Phoenix Wright & The Turnabout Dorm
by Lone Archer
Summary: A midnight murder at Oppel Boarding School leaves Phoenix Wright to piece together parts of his past, to determine the defendant's future. Who really killed Nata Otherone?
1. Investigation Part 1

**May 27, 11:59 pm**

**Oppel Boarding School**

**Dorm 506**

The young man smiles at the girl standing in front of him. She eyes him back with flirtatious eyes. Leaning forward, he gives her a quick peck on her bright red lips before letting his hand slowly fall. Giggling, she playfully pushes him back and places a small bouquet of white carnations onto his dorm bed. Smiling, her hand graces the balcony door handle, and slowly turns it.

"Are you sure you don't want to wake Nata for this?" the boy begins. "It's a tradition!"

The girl shakes her head as she leans over the balcony edge, staring at the bright stars and the matching city lights before her. "No, she went to sleep a couple of hours ago and she'll _kill_ me if I wake her up."

"All right, if you say so." The boy exits the dorm and stands next to the girl, looking out into the city. A scream quickly escapes the girl's mouth, and within seconds, the whole school has joined her. Midnight has arrived.

**May 29, 10:37 am**

**Wright & Co. Law Offices**

**Main Office**

A throbbing pain fills my head and I can't help trying to forget the dream of Edgeworth chasing me with a giant squid out of my mind. It isn't until I realize the pain is a response to a prolonged ongoing scream that I manage to raise my head and look at my attacker.

"Are you going to sleep through lunch or what, Nick?"

Maya stands in front wearing her normal purple spirit charmer kimono and as peppy as always. I block out her screaming by hiding my head under the… binder? What's this doing here?

"I've been looking for you all day, Nick! I searched the burger joint, Kurain Village, your apartment-"

"You got into my house?!" I immediately look up, stunned. I know Maya has special… talents, but last time I checked, pick pocketing wasn't one of them.

"Oh, yeah. It was obvious that you hide your keys under the doormat. I mean, it says, 'Don't lift' right on it."

Oh, Maya. I rub my eyes and slowly get up. I don't even remember why I ended up sleeping at my office. Something about a case, I suppose. The Binder has the title, "Case AW-4" on it. Case AW-4, a case I had actually just heard about last night, about the murder at a boarding school. Back before I attended Ivy University, I actually spent a semester at Oppel, a prestigious four-year college-prep boarding school. It's a nice place. Quiet halls, clean campuses- it's got the works. But this new case surrounding it… it's just too bizarre for words. I decided when I left Oppel that I never wanted to go back, but _she_ just pulled me back in. She wouldn't do anything so stupid as that, would she?

"So are you just going to stand there all day, Nick, or what? What were you doing here anyway? I thought we were going to get lunch and then go see _Pink Princess: The Warrior of Little Olde Tokyo… ON ICE_! Pretty exciting, right?"

A sheepish grin is all I have to offer her, after all, I have business to attend to, "Sorry Maya, but I don't think I'm going to have any time today. I'm off to visit a boarding school for a case."

"Oh, this isn't one of those fake cases, is it Nick? Like the one about stolen corn, you made up to get out of seeing _Pink Princess: The Rise of the Azure Assassin… ON ICE_!?", She glares at me with an intensity I don't think I've seen since she ate that burger that was the size of Pearl.

"For the last time, Maya, I didn't make that case up." I hope it worked. The last thing I need her to find out is that the 'Ancient Corn Factory' that I told her about isn't real. By the looks she's giving me right now though, I think I can assume she's caught on.

**May 29, 12:06 pm**

**Oppel Boarding School**

**Main Courtyard**

Expansive, gorgeous rows of trees and hedges shaped like animals are scattered across the water-filled landscape. There's a manmade river flowing around the area and a giant dolphin fountain in the center of the courtyard. Frankly, it's more beautiful than I remembered. I can't quite recall why I left here.

"Hey there homie!!! What you doing here?!!"

Ah, yes. That's why, "Why hello, Mr. Goodman."

The man standing before me is the former, (or current?), Principal of Oppel Boarding School: Avery Goodman. He's wearing his trademarked horrifyingly red suit and blue tie. His graying hair has a nasty blonde dye-job, and his thick-rimmed glasses don't seem to compliment his appearance. Needless to say, he's never been very good in the style department.

Goodman's a bit overly cheerful and tries way too hard to fit in and be hip with the students. I guess he never really realized that the reason why he's constantly made fun of by students is _because _he tries to fit in. He should have taken hip lessons with me.

… Maya's giving me a look as if to say, "You were never hip, Nick. Don't even try." Speaking of which, why does it seem like everyone can hear my thoughts all the time?

"My, my, my!!! Phoenix Wright!!! I've heard you've gone quite far since you're an away!!!"

An involuntary gulp lodges itself down my throat. "Um, Please Mr. Goodman, you don't have to talk that loudly, we're right here. And I didn't run away! I just didn't have the… necessary skills to really… enrich my learning experience."

Maya glances at me slyly, "Oh, Nick never has the necessary skills to do anything."

"Well, Mr. Wright, are you back to be one of the boyz?" He does a little "hip" dance. Please, kill me now. "After all, Wright, you had a lot of potential, and I can definitely see you wanting to come back and join the 'in crowd.'"

"Um, no", I stammer. "That's not exactly the reason I'm here. I'm here regarding the murder case. The murder that happened on Sunday, May 27?"

Mr. Goodman's eyes seem to have dilated. I haven't seen that expression since he read my first paper. Needless to say, I flunked it. "Oh no, Wright. Nothing of the sort happened last night. The poor girl, Ms. Otherone, just happened to fall off her… balcony."

Sure enough, the familiar semi-transparent chains wrap their way around his body forming two giant red locks: a pair of Psyche-locks. Great, just great.

He looks up at me, "Well, uh, if you're intent on checking this place out, then go ahead. I can't say whether or not you'll actually find anything. Good luck anyway though, bro." He walks away, poised as always. As weird as the people here are, I find myself actually kind of missing this place.

It's strange, Maya's not saying anything. A quick glance over my shoulder tells me that she's mortified over what she just saw.

"Nick… Is this the reason you suck at talking to people?"

Before I can reply, a loud thud causes Maya to yelp and hide behind my legs. Upon further inspection, it's just Gumshoe. He tripped. As always, Gumshoe's messy black hair hides a band-aid on his cheek, and his trademark tan trench-coat trails so long that he has a tendency to trip all over it.

"Hey pal! How're you doing?"

I sigh and help him up.

"Hey, it was a rock! Quite a big one too. She's a beauty, isn't she, Maya? I wonder what I should call her…"

What did I do to get stuck with these two? "Listen, Gumshoe, can you run me through what you know about the murder here?"

"Oh, um… I'm not supposed to help you. Mister- I mean the prosecution said so." He looks up at me like a sad puppy. It'd almost be cute if he wasn't… Gumshoe.

Maya flashes a giant smile, "I'll help you name your rock if you help us!"

After a brief moment, Gumshoe's eyes light up and he smiles his wide-mouthed grin. Sometimes, I wish I was so easily pleased. And how'd Maya get so good at getting stuff out of Gumshoe anyway? Not like it's actually _hard _or anything…

"You got yourself a deal, pal! You guys ready for this? You're not going to believe this case!"

I hold my breath, grabbing the sides of my blue pants with sweaty palms. This is it. This is what's going to help me get down to the bottom of this case, "Go on, Gumshoe."

He lifts his hands as if he's about to tell a scary story, "The victim, a student named Nata Otherone… fell off her balcony!"

His hands drop and his eyes continue to shine with glee. From Maya's silence, I can tell I'm not the only one disappointed, "…That's it?"

"Oh, there's more of course, pal. I just wanted to water the taste buds a bit."

Again. Why?

Gumshoe continues, not at all fazed by my reaction, "So Nata was rooming with her friend Minnie on the top floor of the dorms. At midnight, all the students were participating in the annual Finals Week Scream-a-thon. During the three minute scream-fest, Nata got into an argument with Minnie. Minnie, in a fit of range, kicked Nata on her right cheek with her stiletto. The two ran out onto the balcony, where Minnie pushed Nata over. The body was reported being seen falling at 12:03, right about where the scream-a-thon was scheduled to end. Here's the autopsy report."

I had better keep the autopsy report safe. I'm going to have to file it into the Court Record later, anyway. To be honest, though, the incident sounds gruesome. Falling from the top floor of a dorm after being kicked by your best friend doesn't sound very pleasant. And what is this 'Scream-a-thon'? It must have started after I left. Chances are, some stupid student thought it was a great idea to have the whole school scream out their balconies at midnight before finals. What an idiot, "So Gumshoe, what happened after Nata was pushed? When were the authorities contacted?"

Gumshoe looks down sadly, "Well… since she was pushed down nearing the end of the scream-a-thon, people were still outside on the balconies. Obviously, they kept screaming, but for a different reason. And the student in Dorm 108 reported the murder at about 12:05."

There _is _one thing that seems strange about the whole ordeal though, especially about the architecture of the dorm building, "Just a question Gumshoe. The dorm building is built so that it resembles a semicircle from above. Doesn't that mean that the other students could have looked to the side and seen the crime?"

"Oh, it's not that simple, pal. Y'see, Nata lived in Dorm 508. There are sixteen dorms per floor. Odds are on the north side of the building, and evens on the south. So, I guess students on the fifth floor could see her. The thing is, 508 is smack dab in the center of the building, so the students in floors below couldn't catch a good view of her, and the majority of the students on the fifth floor were attending a party of sorts in Dorm 507, on the opposite side of the building. That, or they were on a different floor at the time. After all, it's not fun to study alone." He chuckles like he actually made a joke.

"I see. Thanks, Gumshoe. I guess I should go check out the crime scene and dig up more information on the party, then. Where can I find it?"

"Nata fell almost completely straight down. She landed almost right outside the large sliding door window of Dorm 108."

"Thanks Gumshoe!" Maya hugs him. "I think you should name him… Rocky!"

By the way Gumshoe looks like he's about to jump up and down, I think he's pleased with it. I start to walk straight towards the dorm building, but Gumshoe is quick to stop me.

"Why're you so interested in this case, anyhow? It doesn't seem to have anything to do with you."

From the looks of it, Maya seems interested as well, "Forget it, Gumshoe. It's a long story."

**May 29, 12:32 pm**

**Oppel Boarding School**

**Outside Dorm 108**

From the chalk outline drawn outside the sliding door window of Dorm 108, I can tell that the scene of the crime was quite gruesome. Apparently, the first floor of the Dorm building is the only level that does not have a balcony. Instead, each dorm has a glass sliding door with curtains and a small, outstretched patio. The patios seem to extend considerably father out than the balconies- probably so it still gets sunlight instead of being blocked by all the floors above it.

Maya looks at me confused, "…Nick? Why is the chalk all messed up? It's on both sides of the patio fence… and it's not on the fence!"

Thinking about it now, it is kind of strange. Before I can reply, though, Maya jumps in, "Nick! Was Nata… cut in half by the fence?!"

The thought of it disturbs me, and for a moment I yelp. Maya looks terrified. There's just one problem with that theory, though. If Nata was indeed cut in half by the fence on her fall, she would have left blood all over it. Also, that would mean she would have to be falling extremely fast, considering the bluntness of the fence. "No, Maya. I think she fell partially on the fence. The autopsy report didn't say anything about being cut in half. It just says that she fell and hit the fence, breaking several bones on impact and dying immediately."

Maya looks relieved and disappointed, but I can't help but- wait a second. Disappointed? Why would Maya look disappointed?!

"I kind of hoped it would be more exciting."

Sometimes… I worry about this girl.

A quick scream breaks the silence and I once again find myself holding on to Maya. What? She's very comforting! It's not that strange… is it? The young man on the other side of the sliding door with its now-open curtains peers at us with frightened eyes. He looks like he's about to run away at any moment. I better show him my badge and hope he takes it well.

"Uh, hey… I'm Phoenix Wright, Defense Attorney. Can I ask you some questions?"

…I don't think he can hear me. And I don't think he's willing to open the glass sliding door either. He has messy brown hair, probably from just waking up, and he's wearing the boarding school's uniform. The school colors are white and blue, and he's dressed accordingly. There's the familiar dark blue slacks and overcoat with a neat button-up white shirt and a blue tie. I can't help but wonder why he would get into his uniform when there's no school today. Could it be that he doesn't realize there was a murder the night before?

"Um, Nick? Wasn't he the one that _found _the dead body? I'm pretty sure he knows."

Ack. Outsmarted by _Maya_ of all people. I'm starting to feel ashamed. The look on Maya's face tells me I should probably pay more attention at hiding what I'm feeling. Maya starts climbing the fence and it takes frantic disapproval from both the boy and I to get her to stop, "Maya! Don't touch the fence! It's vital evidence! Besides, a person died on it!"

The boy shakes his head in utter terror. Finally, he slowly starts to open the glass screen door, "Please don't hurt me! You're- you're a lawyer, right?"

I nod my head and hold out a hand, "Phoenix Wright, Defense Atto-"

"MINNIE DIDN'T DO IT, I SWEAR! SHE COULDN'T HAVE!"

"O-okay. Please calm down." I wonder what this kid has to do with Minnie? I remember her saying something about having siblings…

"All right, I'll tell Nick not to bite. After all, he only does that with Ed-"

"Augh! So what's your name?"

The guy looks at me strangely as Maya ribs me. I swear I'm going to strangle her later.

"Um… my name is Mikey. Mikey Sloth. Um, I'm a student."

"According to the police report, you were the one that found the body," I start, "could you tell us exactly what you saw?"

Mikey nods hesitantly.

Okay, _this _is it. I'm finally going to find out the truth about what happened to Minnie! …Why isn't he saying anything, "Um… _Will_ you tell us exactly what you saw?"

Mikey slowly nods again. What's wrong with this guy? "Well… at eleven o'clock or so I was studying for finals. It was late, and I didn't eat much earlier, so I was pretty hungry. I stock up on the 'Wright Way Lunches' that I get in stock."

"Wait," I cut in, "Did a woman wearing pink give it to you?"

Mikey looks at me confused, but slowly nods anyway. Maybe _she_ has something to do with this case.

He continues, "They're bitter as defeat at the top, but sweet as victory at the bottom. Everyone at Oppel loves it around Finals time, but I ran out, so I got a packet of Cup Noodles instead and brought it to the Dorm Kitchen to microwave. By the time I got back to my dorm after eating, Nata was lying on the ground outside of my dorm with her right leg hanging on the railing of my patio fence! I called the police immediately after that."

His account sounds pretty solid, "And what time was that?"

"I don't know. Probably at like 12:05."

That checks in with Gumshoe's report. Maya gives Mikey a weird look, and then turns to me, "It took him more than an hour to finish a packet of Cup Noodles? At Eldoon's, I can down _three_ of those giant salty bowls of noodles! This guy can't even finish one in that time?"

It _is _kind of strange. I guess Maya's nonstop hunger is useful after all, "Maya's right, Mikey. Why'd it take you so long to finish eating in the kitchen?"

He looks at me worriedly, and immediately the semi-transparent Psyche-Locks are back, this time clamping him with just one red lock. Why does it seem like everyone has something to hide?

"Um… I have to go. But, please! Help Minnie! I know she's not the killer! She couldn't have something like that! I would know. I'm… her boyfriend."

He's her WHAT?! I didn't think Minnie would go after _this _type of guy. This is surprising, to say the least, "I promise you I'll get an innocent verdict. This is personal, anyhow. We should be going to the Detention Center. Thanks for your help, Mikey."

He nods, closes the door, and rushes off. Suspicious little guy.

"Say, Nick," Maya wonders aloud as we walk away from the Dorm, "Do you know Minnie?"

I choose not to answer and keep walking.

**May 29, 2:18 pm**

**Detention Center**

**Visiting Area**

"Phoenix Wright?! Have you heard the good news? Finals week is cancelled!"

I stare at Minnie Cooper. Is this girl for real? She has her familiar fire-red hair but it's tied into two pigtails, and her Oppel Boarding School uniform has a giant yellow smiley-face button pinned on the left side of her stylish blue coat. Like all the girls at the boarding school, the slacks, short socks, and semi-formal black shoes are replaced with a blue skirt, long white socks to her knees, and semi-formal black high heels.

"Um… Minnie… do you know _why _Finals Week is cancelled?"

She stares at me confused, "…Mr. Goodman loves us?"

"Well… that's true, but that's not why. You're charged for the murder of Nata Otherone."

Her eyes widen, "WHAT?! But why would I kill Nata? I had better style, anyhow."

I cock my head to the side and take a sideways glance at Maya, who looks equally confused. This is _not _the Minnie that I remember, "Minnie? Are you okay? You don't seem the way that you were back in our first year at Oppel."

"What are you talking about?" She looks confused, "This _is _my first year at Oppel."

"What?!" I stare at her, not knowing what to say, "B-but… we almost dated! How can you forget your Feenie?!"

"… … … … … … …"

All this silence is making me nervous.

"Didn't you date my sister?"

Her… sister? I couldn't possibly have confused her with…

"Winnie Cooper. My sister. Flame red-hair in a bum? Slim and loves to swim? Hey, that rhymes!" She hums happily to herself. Now, I'm pretty sure it wasn't Minnie that I got along with. I already have Maya to play the role of the oblivious sidekick. She glares at me as if to say, "I'm not oblivious… whatever that means."

"So, uh… Winnie, I mean Minnie. How is your sister doing?"

"NICK!" Maya glares at me looking like she's about to slap me, "So the reason why you took this case was because you wanted to date Minnie?!"

"WHAT?! No! I just… I was wondering what happened to Winnie!"

Minnie tilts her head to the side and looks up, as if trying to remember something. I stand there, avoiding Maya's gaze, waiting for Minnie to respond. The guard at the corner of the detention center turns to look at us, "Hey, if you guys aren't actually talking, can you leave?"

Ack! Please tell me that Minnie's going to say something, "Hey Minnie! What were you going to sa-"

"She's a Prospector!" Minnie beams at us, childish glee bursting out of her. All this happiness is kind of overwhelming. I haven't seen anyone like this since… Pearl? Obviously, this isn't the girl I dated.

"A Prospector? Like someone who finds mineral objects?" I cock an eyebrow.

Maya suddenly looks excited, "Ooh! Maybe we can go to her and check what kind of mineral Rocky is!"

I wonder if I should break the news to her that Rocky is just a rock.

"That sounds about right," Minnie smiles, "She's always busy travelling all over the place, she must really love those minerals. I was always more of a gymnastics girl, myself." She beams again. Geez, does this girl have any other mode except for "Obnoxiously Clueless and Happy"?

"So, um, about the case…" I start.

"What case?" She smiles back, her eyes shine with innocence.

"The, uh, case that you're charged for murder?"

Maya jumps in, "They think you killed Nata!"

"What?! Why would I kill Maya? I have better style, anyway."

Where have I heard this before? "Anyway, can you tell us what happened that night? We need to know everything that went on so we can defend you. I _am_ going to be your defense lawyer, after all. If not for you, for Winnie."

Minnie looks at me confused, but nods anyway, "Okay. So basically, at about 11:30 I go to the dorm right next door to mine. I… forget the number, but facing the hallway it's the dorm to my left."

That would be Dorm 506, I'm assuming.

"I'm just hanging out with my friend Cody. We study and talk and at about midnight we go out on the balcony and scream for a couple minutes. That's all that happened. I wasn't even in Nata's room at the time!"

Hmm, her testimony adds up with all the evidence that we got… but so far we don't have any besides the Autopsy Report, "So who's this 'Cody'? Does he live in the dorm next to you?"

She thinks a bit, and then responds, "Yeah. He lives next door. He's really sweet and wouldn't hurt a fly… really generous with food, too."

Maya's eyes light up. I better keep her away from him, "So, you were studying with him for about half an hour?"

She looks up and thinks for a bit, and then happily nods. Something tells me she's not telling the whole truth, but there's no Psyche-Lock, "All right, this is the last question, Minnie. Did you, or did you not kill Nata Otherone?"

Minnie hesitates for a minute and looks up to think about it. This is beginning to worry me. Does she have to think to remember if she killed someone? After a brief moment, she worriedly looks at me and says, "No."

It looks like that's all I'm going to get out of her. I should go back and investigate this Cody, and examine Dorm 508.

**May 29, 4:22 pm**

**Dorm Building**

**Dorm 508**

So this is the crime scene, huh? It looks a mess, so there was probably a struggle. No one else is in here, so I guess we can investigate all we want. Maya looks like a kid at a playground, I should probably make sure she doesn't touch anything, "Hey Maya. Watch out for evidence. You don't want to mess with anything."

She gives me a sad look, "Oh, Nick. You're no fun!"

"It's not about fun, Maya. It's about the case."

The dorm is pretty messy, with identical beds on the left and right side of the room and books all over the floor. There's a vase of wilted carnations lying on the desk to which is hugging the left wall. From the pictures and trophies, I can assume it's Nata's. The desk on the right wall seems to be Minnie's. It has gymnastic trophies, posters of a boy band, and… more wilted carnations? Hmm, seems both girls liked carnations. I better keep a note of that.

There's also one living, white carnation lying on the floor next to a black stiletto heel. It's incredibly tiny. I wonder if Minnie has really small feet. Also, why is the carnation on the floor the only living one?

"Maybe they only had enough water to water one of them!" Maya smiles at me, as if proud that she figured something out. I think I should keep her away from Minnie.

"I think that's all we're going to find here, Maya. Why do you think that there's one living carnation? Unless, they were bought at a different time, but who would just buy one carnation if Nata and Minnie seem to buy vases full of them?" The whole scene is really puzzling. I better go over everything I have.

Maya looks up at me eagerly, "So, so far we have the Autopsy Report, a Single White Carnation found on the ground of Dorm 508, Two Vases of White Carnations found on two different desks in Dorm 508, and Minnie's right-foot stiletto heel. Do you have any idea what went on here, Nick?"

"No… none of this seems like concrete evidence to accuse anyone, but I guess the only real suspect they have is Minnie." Nothing is making sense. The difference in stages of the flowers, the tiny heel, and motive of Minnie, or lack thereof. No one I've talked to has a reason to kill Nata. I guess I should go talk to Cody now.

"Come on, Maya. We're not going to find anything else, here, at least without Gumshoe."

Maya nods, "Let's go find someone to talk to, then. I'm sure they'll be more helpful than if you just try to figure things out on your own, Nick."

What's that supposed to mean?!

**May 29, 4:53 pm**

**Dorm Building**

**Dorm 506**

I guess I should knock on the door. After all, unlike Dorm 508, it's not open as a crime scene. I knock twice before a young man opens the door, staring me like I'm an alien, "Um… can I help you?"

"Hi, I'm Phoenix Wright, the defense attorney for Minnie Cooper? She said she stayed with you the night of the murder, and I thought we'd ask you a few questions. Is that okay?"

He looks as if he's contemplating, but eventually he nods and leaves the doorway, letting us walk in. Immediately, Maya gravitates towards the bed. I know she can handle herself, but frankly I'm a little worried she'll stop jumping on it if I don't stop her. This dorm seems different from Dorm 508. It's larger and more spacious, and only one bed lies on the right side of the room, identical to the others of course. There's a single desk at the left side of the room and a small bathroom separated by a partition from the rest of the dorm.

The young man leads me to the bed before closing the curtains and switching on the desk lamp. I sit on the bed next to Maya and he props himself on the desk, "I'm Cody, by the way, Cody Pendant. How can I help you?"

"So," Maya looks up at him inquisitively, "Minnie says that she was with you the whole night. Is that true?" She looks like she's trying to figure something out.

"Well, yeah," Cody begins, "Minnie and I are really close, so it wasn't a surprise when she came over at about 11:30 to study."

"Was it a surprise meeting or planned?" I ask.

"Oh, it wasn't planned. She just showed up to study and participate in the Finals Week Three-Minute-Scream-a-Thon."

As I dreaded, the semi-transparent chains began to wrap around Cody, forming a giant lock on his heart. Why can't anyone I talk to tell the full truth for once? I sigh and look at him, "Cody… tell us the truth."

He stares blankly at me, "What?"

"The meeting was planned, wasn't it?"

Maya looks at me, confused, "Is it another Psyche-Lock?" I nod.

Cody looks behind his shoulder and says, "Okay, you got me. She planned to come over and study."

The lock stays firmly on his chest. Obviously, I'm not getting anywhere, "So what were you doing before she came over?"

He thinks for a minute, "I think… I think I was getting hungry, so I was going to go to the kitchen, but before I left the fire alarm went off."

Maya perks up, "What? How come no one has mentioned this before?"

"Oh," Cody starts, "It was a false alarm. A small cooking accident or something. There wasn't a real fire, but there was lots of smoke and noodles all over the ground. I heard about it in the morning. It's been spreading all over the school from the _Oppel Opal_."

Hmm, a fire warning? "Do you think I could have that issue of the _Oppel Opal_ please, Cody?"

"Oh, yeah, keep it." Cody rummages through his drawer, revealing a stack of newspapers before tossing an issue titled, 'Noodle Mayhem at 11:00!' at me. Just my luck, it hits me in the head.

Maya sighs, "Nick never was good at catching."

What do I look like, a dog? Although… something tells me that's not what she meant.

Cody turns back at me, "Anyway, so I ended up not eating. I decided to just go out and look at the stars. Minnie came over at about 11:30 and we just studied and talked for a while. Near midnight, we went out to scream for the scream-a-thon. That's when… I saw it."

"You saw… what?" I can tell he's getting uncomfortable. Could he be… a witness?

"Well… from my balcony, I can see Dorm 508 because of the curvature of the building. When I was outside earlier in the night, the balcony door was closed. When I came out with Minnie, the door was open. Also, there were two silhouettes facing each other and moving around. I remember thinking that maybe Nata was working out."

I stop him, "Does she normally work out at midnight?"

He stammers and shakes his head.

"Then why did you think that?" asks Maya.

He shrugs, and after a beat, continues, "We finished screaming and Minnie wanted to stay out, but when I turned around, I saw something happen. One of the figures was running frantically out to the balcony. I feared he or she was murderous, so I shoved Minnie back in the dorm and I locked the sliding door."

He looks visibly disturbed. The lock still stands, but I don't think I'm going to get much more out of him. His answers are all very vague, and by the looks of it, he doesn't seem to want to comply. I guess I'm just going to have to get it all out him in court tomorrow, "Are you a witness in tomorrow's trial?"

He nods, "Yeah, Mr. Wong briefed me earlier today."

Mr.…Wong? I wonder who he is. Nevertheless, he's looking really uncomfortable, I should probably go, "I'll talk to you tomorrow, then, Cody."

He nods and pulls out a lollipop from his pocket, "Hey little girl. Take this." He smiles the first real smile I've seen of him and Maya begrudgingly takes the treat from him.

"I'm not a little girl… but thanks anyway."

He shrugs and waves as we exit the dorm. I'm pretty sure this new evidence can help me break some Psyche-Locks.

**May 29, 5:18 pm**

**Dorm Building**

**Dorm 108**

"Oh, don't go in there!" Mikey's voice yells, "It's an absolute mess!"

Too late. By the time I hear him shouting down the hall, I've already opened his dorm room. It is indeed a mess. The two bunks are barely visible from all the sports equipment and books littering the ground. It's actually fairly gross, "What went on in here?"

Mikey grabs the back of his neck, embarrassed, "My roommate is a total slob. I hate when people come in our dorm, because they always judge me."

Poor kid, he doesn't seem like he has very much self-confidence. The one red lock is still attached to his chest. Looks like I better break it. "So, Mikey, can you recap what you said you were doing on the night of the crime for me?"

He glances at me nervously, "Um… sure. I was hungry at around eleven at night, so I went to get some Cup Noodles, since I was out of Ms. Starr's 'Wright Way Lunches'. After I finished eating, I came right back here and the first thing I saw was the dead body lying outside my patio door."

"Hmm, there's something about what you said that doesn't make sense." I look him in the eyes and I can see the droplets of sweat begin to form.

He looks at me frantically, "Um… what do you mean?"

Maya cuts in, "You _couldn't _have eaten at around eleven in the kitchen!"

"W-why not?"

"There was a cooking accident in the kitchen according to Cody Pendant at Dorm 506," I look at him, waiting for a reaction, "someone burnt something which set off the smoke alarm, and according to this issue of the _Oppel Opal_, there were noodles all over the floor."

Mikey jumps up and lets out a quiet yelp. After a brief moment, he looks at the ground and mutters, "You got me." Instantly, the red lock shatters, and the semi-transparent chains dissipate.

"So what really happened that night?" Maya asks with her finger on her chin.

Mikey looks up, like a sad puppy dog, "I… burnt the noodles. I forgot to pour water into the packet of Cup Noodles and I just stuck it in the microwave. It… burnt down and alerted the smoke alarm. I… was just so embarrassed. I ran out before they even came back to stop the fire alarm. Please don't tell anyone…"

Hmm… so Mikey was in the kitchen at around eleven, but he came back soon after. What was he doing between then and the time of the murder?

"Yo wazzup, my dawgs?!!"

Unfortunately, it looks like Professor Avery Goodman is here.

"Hey, Phoenix Bro, I appreciate you coming here and all, but I gotta ask you to leave. 5:30 is when all visitors not sleeping here have to bounce." There's still two Psyche-Locks attached to him, but it looks like there's nothing else I can do.

The trial's tomorrow and I still don't know everything that I should. I have a bunch of evidence and a few suspects, but there's still at least three Psyche-Locks at Oppel Boarding School, and I haven't even investigated the suspicious party at Dorm 507. Looks like I'll have to try to extend the trial tomorrow so I can have another investigation. The problem is… will I be able to pull that off?

To be continued…


	2. Trial Part 1

**May 30, 9:36 am**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 3**

Today's the big day. I'm feeling really nervous because I'm not sure whether I can pull this off or not. I don't even have an idea about who did it. No one seems to have a motive, and there's still a suspicious party that I haven't investigated. Is it even possible to declare a verdict today? I guess I'm just going to have to stall this trial out.

Maya is sitting next to me on the wooden waiting bench with a small burger. It calms her nerves. I kind of wish I had a burger right about now.

The brown door across from us opens, and Minnie Cooper arrives with two police judges. She's as happy as always. I still don't think she fully processes what is going on. Maybe it's for the best. If she doesn't know how serious the situation is, she won't be able to freak out. Still, I don't like keeping her in the dark.

"Phoenix!" she cries in happiness, her arms in the air in full-hug mode. I manage to stand up just fast enough for her to not run into the wall behind me. Maya slips me a sly sideways glance. "How are you? Are you excited for the trial?"

I give her a resigned look, "Not really. Hey, before we go in there, can I just ask you a few questions?" I hope she accepts. The trial doesn't start until 9:45, so we still have a few precious moments to sort this out. She thinks about it for a while, and then nods. It kind of worries me that she had to think about her answer.

"All right, then, Minnie. Can you tell me everything you know about the case?"

She… thinks about it for a minute. Way to get me really nervous about this, Minnie. After a brief moment, her eyes brighten, as if she just remembered something, and then smiles at me, "Oh! I was in Dorm 506 at the time. There's no way I could have killed Nata."

"As much as I believe you, Minnie, I can't just take it for face value. The only person that can verify that is Cody, and we need evidence to back up your claims." I sigh and glance over at Maya. This case is going to be tough. She takes a bite of the hamburger she's holding and wraps it back up again. I blink, "What are you doing? Don't you normally eat all of it?"

She grins at me, "I was thinking you might need some during the trial today. You seem pretty nervous. Besides, if you don't eat it, I could always give it to Rocky!" She beams at me. Maya never ceases to amaze me.

My watch beep and I feel the color drain from my face. The trial is about to start, and I still have no idea what went on that night and who's to blame. The bailiff takes Minnie in and Maya and I follow her. This is going to be a tough battle, but I'm going to pull through. I just know it.

**May 30, 9:45 am**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

"All rise for the Honorable Judge!" cries the bailiff and everyone in the courtroom abides.

I'm feeling kind of lightheaded. I just might take Maya up on her offer sometime. I realize she's been gripping my hand for some time, but with a napkin between our hands. When I give her a confused glance, she grins and says quietly, "You're a little sweaty. But, knock 'em out." I smile. I can do this, at least with Maya at my side.

The judge blinks with his usual expression of confusion, "Are the defense and prosecution ready?"

I nod and say as confidently as I can, "The defense is ready."

Across from me, a handsome, black-haired man on a large golden throne replies, "Hmm… Phoenix Wright. How I've longed to battle you in court." He snickers, "The prosecution is ready, your honor." He holds a glass cup of dark wine and a small bottle of it rests on his podium. He takes a sip and sighs, "You will taste the bitter of defeat, as I taste the richness of aged wine." Licking his lips, he smiles at me. I can't even imagine how painful it must be to sit in a throne like that and retain perfect posture.

"Um… Mr. Falcon Wong, is it?" the judge asks, confused as always, "I'm afraid we can't allow you to make judgments while under the influence of alcohol."

"That would be a valid argument," Falcon concedes, "if I were making a judgment. No, your honor, it is _you _who will be making the judgments. I simply have to present the facts. I am confident that the evidence and facts we have on hand are enough to render any counterpoints useless. A monkey could do my job tonight. In fact, I think the dim-witted man in blue across from me could win this case if he were on my side."

Dim-witted? Now, that's a low blow!

The judge takes a second to contemplate, but then nods, "Okay, Mr. Wong. What is your opening statement?"

Falcon clears his throat and takes a sip of his wine before looking at the audience above us, "I am sure that by the end of this day, every single person in this courtroom will agree with me that Minnie Cooper, the victim's roommate and our defendant, was the only one capable of the victim's murder." He turns his head and looks directly at me, "And I say 'every single person', which includes…. you!"

Immediately, a murmur spreads across the audience, and I feel small beads of sweat begin to drip on my face. The trial hasn't even begun yet and he's got everyone on his side!

The judge nods, "All right, then, Mr. Wong. Please call your first witness."

"I'd like to call the homicide detective in charge of the case to the stand."

This is it. The first testimony. Maya's grip is starting to cut off my circulation, but I wouldn't' have it any other way in this situation.

**May 30, 9:49 am**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

Detective Dick Gumshoe stands at the witness podium, smiling his usual happy-go-lucky smile. He nods at me and performs a two fingered wave in my direction before reaching the stand. Something tells me he thinks this whole thing is a game. He couldn't be more wrong. This is life and death.

"Name and occupation, please?" Falcon says as he looks at Gumshoe.

Gumshoe smiles and happily replies, "Dick Gumshoe, homicide detective of Case AW-4."

Falcon swishes the wine in his cup around a bit and mutters, almost as if to himself, "Please tell the court what happened that day." He's staring into his wine as he swishes it, almost as if there's something interesting in it. This guy must be really confident in his case for him to be so apathetic.

Gumshoe nods and looks at me, "Sorry pal, but I think we got you with this one." He pulls out the autopsy report of Nata Otherone. "You see, Nata Otherone was kicked in the face and pushed off her fifth story dorm balcony at around 12:03. At that time, the annual Finals Week Midnight Scream-a-Thon was taking place. Thus, no one heard the argument preceding the murder, and no one heard her screams until they saw her body fall. Now all of the suspects have an alibi, because all of them were participating in the scream-a-thon at the time. In fact, there was a whole party across the dorm hall dedicated to the scream-a-thon. There's no reason why anyone would want to leave a party just to murder someone."

I slam my hands on the podium, ignoring the wet napkin that's now stuck to it, "Objection! Please keep conjecture out of the testimony. 'There's no reason why anyone would want to leave a party'? That's baseless conjecture. What if the killer didn't like loud noises and killed Nata because her screaming was annoying her?"

"Objection!" Immediately the crowd goes silent. I stare at Gumshoe. Did he actually just yell that? And did his voice actually just crack? "I told you I got you with this one, Nick." He smiles at me and wags his pointer finger happily. "Nata Otherone was asleep before the Scream-a-Thon. We've had a lot of people testify that she thought that sleeping was a better way to score better on finals than cramming until midnight and then screaming off frustration. That means she couldn't have been annoying her killer by screaming!"

Wow… Gumshoe just made a valid point. I don't think I've ever heard him do that before. I stammer, "Well… that's still just random thoughts! You can't use that in a courtroom. I demand you edit your testimony so that it just contains facts!"

The judge nods and slams his gavel onto his podium, "Please change your testimony, witness."

Gumshoe shrugs, "Well that's not all the evidence we have. I'll review what we know. Most of the students were participating in the scream-a-thon. However, we have the stiletto heel that belonged to Minnie in the court record. We had our forensics team check out the wound and they concluded that the bruise on the victim's right cheek was from this stiletto shoe."

Falcon nods and adds, "We also know that Minnie is an accomplished gymnast, and it is very difficult to kick someone in the face unless a person is very… flexible."

Wait a second. Something's not adding up. Maya gives me that all-knowing look, and I know she agrees. "Objection!" I slam the table, hoping to get utter silence. The audience keeps murmuring though. Obviously they like Gumshoe better than me. "It is either impossible for that stiletto heel to have been the culprit of Nata's wound, or it is impossible that Minnie kicked her!"

Falcon takes a sip from his wine and swishes the cup around, "Oh, pray tell, Mr. Wright. What diluted fantasy are you going to spout today? I've seen your court cases. I know your tactics."

I shake my head, "It's not a 'deluded fantasy', this evidence is!" I hold up several court papers, "We see here that the stiletto heel in question is the shoe that belongs on the right foot. Now, Gumshoe, where was the victim kicked."

He looks at me, confused, "The right cheek."

The judge looks at me, equally confused, "Could you explain this to me, Mr. Wright?"

"How could Minnie kick the victim on the right cheek, with her right foot? That is physically impossible if they were standing, facing each other!"

"Why… you're right!" The judge's eyes light up, "Do you have a response, Mr. Wong?"

Falcon grins as he shakes his head, "That would be a valid point if you had proof that they were standing facing each other."

The judge glances at Falcon, "But when people are talking, or even screaming, at each other. Wouldn't they face each other?"

Falcon shakes his head, "What if Nata turned around, being done with Minnie, and she was kicked then?"

"Your response, Mr. Wright?" the judge chimes in.

"I have a witness that can verify that the victim was facing the defendant!" I smile, slamming the podium.

Falcon looks surprised, and he slams the table in response, "And who is that?"

"I'd like to call to the witness stand, Cody Pendant!" I cry.

**May 30, 9:55 am**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

Cody Pendant scratches his head nervously, holding the latest copy of the _Oppel Opal_ and flipping a page. He has a stack of the newspaper on the podium, each from a different month.

Falcon brushes the hair out of his eyes, "Name and occupation. Now." He seems peeved. I guess he was expecting to get a verdict just out of Gumshoe. He obviously doesn't know how I play. I may not have the whole case down, but I know how to point out inconsistencies if I see them.

Cody flips a page, "Cody Pendant, I'm a student at Oppel Boarding School."

The judge hits his gavel on the podium and says, "What would you like the witness to testify about, Mr. Wright?"

"Please tell us what you saw on the night of the crime." I'm confident that Cody's testimony will help clear up Minnie's name, at least for the stiletto heel incident.

Cody nods and closes the pages of the _Oppel Opal_. "I guess I should get started then. So, Minnie and I had planned to meet and study at around 11:30. She usually gets tutored by Nata, but that night, Nata went to sleep early. It was the Sunday before Finals week, so Nata wanted to rest up."

"Hold it!" I cry, pointing a finger at Cody, "Minnie gets tutored by Nata? That could be vital information. Why didn't you tell me before?"

He scratches his head, "Could you… not point at me like that? It's kind of terrifying."

Maya grabs my arm, "It really is."

Cody opens his newspaper and hides his face behind it, only showing his eyes, "Anyway, uh, I just didn't think it was that important. Nata's been tutoring Minnie for ages. They've been friends forever."

I nod, "Exactly. Why would Minnie want to kill her best friend? She has no motive!"

The crowd murmurs, and I smirk with victory. Falcon just shakes his head, "Let's get to motive later. I'm sure you'll be quite… surprised at what I can prove." I gulp. "Witness, please continue your testimony."

"Minnie showed up right on time to my dorm. I live in Dorm 506, the one right next door to Nata's. We studied for a bit and at around 11:52, she went to get something to drink. I took the time to go out on my balcony and look at the stars."

"Hold it! Cody, did you notice anything strange when you were outside?"

He nods and continues, "The balcony door in Nata's room was closed, but when I came out to scream later, it was open. Nata hates the cold, and always closes it before she sleeps. Heck, everyone does. It gets really cold at night."

"Objection!" Falcon swirls his wine around in his cup, "Couldn't Minnie have gone back to her dorm to get a drink while you were outside? Couldn't she have opened it then?"

"Well… I guess."

"Then what's so strange about it?"

"Objection!" I glare at Falcon. Unfortunately for me, he knows what he's doing, "Nata never opened her balcony door when she sleeps! If it was open one night, don't you think she'd feel the cold at midnight and wake up to close it?"

The crowd murmurs and I smile. There's no way Falcon can maneuver himself out of this one. I've got him.

"Well, actually, Mr. Wright. We can assume that Nata Otherone was a deep sleeper. A fire alarm went on at around 11:00 and she slept right through it." Falcon grins at me and brushes the hair out of his eyes. I wish he'd get off that throne and prosecute like a real man. Like Edgeworth would.

"Witness," I start, staring intensely at Cody, "What time did Nata go to sleep?"

Cody thinks for a moment and flips to the front page of the _Oppel Opal_. It reads, "Nata Otherone, Two Hours of Beauty Sleep Before her Beauty Death!" I have to say that that's the worst headline in a school newspaper that I've ever seen.

"By logical deduction, and taking into account the newspaper article, Nata went to sleep at roughly 10:00." Falcon takes another sip out of his wine. "Ergo, I have just proven that Nata Otherone was a deep sleeper."

"Objection! The witness just testified that the victim hated the cold! If she had such a vehement dislike of cold weather, I'm certain that she would have woken up if the door were open. Thus, her killer must have known that she wouldn't wake up unless it was cold!" I grin at Falcon. Unfortunately, he grins back.

"And who would know this information? Why… her roommate of course, aka the defendant, Minnie Cooper!"

Ack! How does he manage to turn everything into his favor? I know that Minnie didn't do it! No Psyche-Locks appeared when I asked her and she denied it. I must be approaching this whole thing from the wrong angle, "Cody. Please continue your testimony." I'm pretty sure that I won't get much ground if I keep pressing this topic. He has this area down.

"So anyway," Cody continues, "She got a drink and I joined her back inside again. We studied for a couple more minutes, but then I realized that midnight was approaching. We went out to scream on my balcony and, as I said before, Nata's balcony door was open. I also saw two figures in her room moving around and facing each other."

"Hold it! Cody, was there anything suspicious about what was going on in Nata's room?"

He thinks for a brief second and then responds, "Her movements were very fast and erratic. I thought she was doing some sort of exercise routine."

Falcon nods, "So the victim seemed to put up a struggle. I can assume that there was a fight going on, which ended up with the victim getting the wound on her right cheek. All signs still point to Minnie."

"Do you forget what I proved during Gumshoe's testimony," I egg him on, "Since Cody just verified that the victim and the killer were facing each other, it's impossible that Minnie could have kicked her on the right cheek with her right heel. In fact, it's impossible for her to be at the crime scene at the time of the murder in the first place. She was with Cody the whole time!"

"Objection!" Falcon slams his arms on the table, spilling wine all over his podium, "There was a brief couple of minutes where the witness was outside looking at the stars. Minnie 'went to get a drink', but no one can verify where she went!"

I growl, but try to hold my stance, "Still, it was impossible for Minnie to kick Nata!"

The judge blinks, "Well this testimony has caused a lot of arguing. Mr. Wright, what do you propose actually happened that night?"

Oh no. I still have no idea. I guess I'm just going to have to make things up as I go along. "All right. So, by the facts, we know that Nata went to sleep at around 10:00, and the murder happened at three minutes after 12:00. A student in Dorm 108, Mikey Sloth, found the body at 12:05. As you said, the murder occurred during the scream-a-thon, which started at midnight, and continued through the murder. Thus, most students would have an alibi, but not all. There was a party across the hall from the victim's dorm. I've heard this from multiple sources, and I think it holds a key to what actually happened. I propose that it was someone from inside the party that murdered Nata Otherone!"

Falcon shakes his head and pops open the cork of his wine bottle. It hits me square in the face. Maya grins at me, "I think you were supposed to dodge that."

Falcon pours himself another glass of wine and slams the bottom of the bottle on the podium, "All of what you just said is baseless conjecture."

The crowd begins to talk, and I begin to blush. Just when I thought I had a road out of here, he has to pull me down again!

"That being said," Falcon eyes me suspiciously, "I would be willing to entertain the court with another day of trial if we briefly discuss the possible motives that our defendant could have."

He's… giving me a chance. If I just let him talk about the motive, he'll be willing to extend the trial, which means I can investigate the party! But… if he's willing to give up his chance at a one-day trial, like he said in the beginning of today, I'm sure he must have some pretty solid proof with the motive. Can I deflect it all in time to stall for another day?

"Well, Mr. Wright?" The judge looks at me, gavel in hand.

"I… accept Mr. Wong's conditions. I will investigate the party tomorrow and we will discuss motives today."

The judge nods, "Then after the next witness's testimony, we will adjourn for the day. Mr. Wong, who would you like to call as your last witness?"

"I would like to bring to the stand," Falcon smirks, "the defendant, Minnie Cooper!"

**May 30, 10:38 am**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

Minnie Cooper stands at the stand with her wide-mouthed smile. I'm starting to wonder if anything can get this girl down. She's still wearing her Oppel Boarding School uniform and she's still smiling at me. I don't think she realizes how serious this situation is.

Falcon smirks, "Name and occupation please."

Minnie cocks her head to the side as if thinking hard about something. I swear if her testimony is filled with her just standing and thinking, I will hurl something at Falcon. "Um… Minnie Cooper, I'm a student at Oppel Boarding School." She beams at him. He's the enemy! Someone needs to tell her to stop fraternizing with the enemy!

"All right," Falcon swishes his wine around, "Please testify as to your and the victim's relationship."

She cocks her head to the side again, "I'm sorry, Dave. I can't do that."

What?! Immediately the audience starts to talk, and I can see Falcon is just as confused as I am.

"Explain yourself. Now!" Falcon slams his wine glass on the podium, spilling more wine all over the place.

"Well," she begins looking up to think, "I don't know anyone named 'Taye Vincent'."

I can feel sweat droplets the size of Pearl forming on my head. I turn to Maya, "Maya… could I have that half-eaten burger you offered me? I think I might need it." She takes it out of her pocket and hands it to me. It's cold, but the way this case is going, it'll be hot before we finish.

"First off," Falcon shakes his head, "My name is not 'Dave'. It's 'Falcon Wong'. Secondly, there is no one named 'Taye Vincent' involved in this case. I will ask you again. Please testify about your relationship to the victim, also known as Nata Otherone."

Immediately, her eyes light up, "Oh! Nata! I love her so much, but we got into a big argument recently."

Falcon's eyes glint and he smirks at me, "Continue."

"Well," Minnie begins, staring up to think again, "Nata and I have known each other for years, before we came to Oppel, I think."

She… thinks? Oh brother. "Hold it! Minnie, if you and Nata were such good friends, you would have no reason to kill her, right?" It's a stretch, but it might be enough to end this prematurely.

"I guess you're right." She smiles at me.

"Objection! Stop interrupting the witness's testimony. She hasn't finished yet." Falcon glares.

"Objection sustained, "the Judge nods, "Please continue."

"Okay…" Minnie scratches her head and then shrugs, "She used to tutor me. She's always been the smart one. I was just the funny one, see?"

I don't think she realizes the awkward silence.

"So anyway, we had a flower dedicated to our friendship. It was the white… the white carnival, I think?"

"'Carnation' is the flower I believe you were thinking of." Falcon cuts in. "The white carnation."

"That sounds about right," Minnie continues, "So anyway, we both have vases of white carnations on our desk. I bought hers after she bought me mine at the beginning of the semester. So that's… January, I think. But recently, we got into an argument because she was frustrated that I really wasn't getting the material for our Math class."

"Wait, Minnie," I interrupt, "Was Math the only class that she tutored you in?"

"No… She tutored me in a lot of things. She always has. Without her, I don't think I could have gotten into Oppel!" She beams. I don't think she realizes that what she just said isn't the best thing to boast about. "So, I really didn't get the material, and she was frustrated because her grades were suffering from spending so much time helping me. I said some stupid things, and she did too, and before I knew it, we weren't talking."

"Precisely." Falcon grins, "As you can see, the defendant and victim got into a huge argument. We have witnesses who say the argument occurred on the twenty-fifth of May, that is two days before her murder."

I gulp. Frankly, the timing is awfully suspicious.

"What I believe happened," Falcon sighs as he takes another sip from his wine, "Is that the white carnations had been wilting for quite some time… the white carnations… of their friendship!" That has got to be the corniest thing I've ever heard. "Trying to make it up to her, Minnie entered the crime scene with a single white carnation, found next to the stiletto heel. She presented it to Nata, but something went wrong. This lead to the stiletto attack on Nata, and ultimately, the murder."

"Objection! All that is just conjecture! You have absolutely no proof that Minnie brought a white carnation to Nata's room on May 27!"

"Objection!" Falcon pours himself another glass of dark wine, "Who else knew about the sign of friendship?"

This is it- the moment where I can prove Minnie innocent. Who else could have possible known about the white carnations? Only one person had the possibility to kill Nata Otherone, and I'm about to prove it! "The other person that knew about the white carnations was… You, Falcon Wong!!"

There's an awkward silence in the air. Falcon just laughs. Well… it worked on all my other cases. I thought I'd give it a shot. I guess not all prosecutors are involved in the case. "Oh, Phoenix Wright. You always try to pin the crime on the prosecutor, don't you? Too bad for you, I have absolutely nothing to do with this case."

"Well… I was, uh, just testing you!" I don't know what came over me. Maya looks at me, resigned, as if she knows. "No one… no one could have known about the white carnations."

Falcon smiles, "Exactly. Other people would have just thought that Nata and Minnie liked white carnations."

Maya's eyes widen and she prods me on the waist with her elbow, "Nick! What if the killer didn't know about the sign of friendship?"

She's right. What if… it was just a coincidence? "Objection! The killer didn't need to know that the white carnations were a sign of friendship! He or she could have just been in the dorm and seen the vases of white carnations and assumed they were Nata's favorite flower!"

"Objection! And what reason would they have to randomly bring in a white carnation on the midnight of finals week?"

"Objection! I… uh, why does there have to be a reason?"

The Judge slams his gavel, "Mr. Wright, this is a court of law! While we can entertain your theory that the killer assumed white carnations were Nata's favorite flower, there has to be a reason and evidence to back your assumptions! Tell me, Mr. Wright, what reason would the killer have to give Nata Otherone a flower?"

I stare at the court papers. There has to be something I can use. "I propose," I start, my voice shaky with nervousness, "I propose that… the killer loved the victim!"

The audience begins chattering away again. This is a good sign. Even if I'm just picking at sticks, I'm getting them to think, and considering how easily the Judge is influenced, I think that just might do it.

"Objection! Mr. Wright, what evidence do you have to support the killer loved the victim?" Falcon glares at me. It feels like lasers burning into my head.

"Mr. Wong, let me ask you a question," I hope I can get away with this. "What happens when a toad is struck by lightning?"

Falcon is silent. He isn't even touching his wine.

"The same thing that happens to everything else." The Judge blinks, trying to piece my riddle together.

"And what's your point?"

"And what happens when a student is struck by love?" It's working, I can feel the audience's energy amp up. I just might be able to do this. "The same thing that happens when a toad is struck by lightning! A student who's madly in love does not think rationally. THAT is why the killer entered the dorm at midnight. THAT is why he brought a white carnation when he didn't know what it meant. THAT is why he opened the balcony door to wake Nata Otherone up. I propose that the murderer of Nata Otherone was one who was deeply smitten! I propose that the murder… was an accident!"

I love the sound of court murmurings in the morning.

The Judge starts attacking his podium with his gavel to quiet the noisy and restless audience, "Order in the court! Mr. Wright raises an interesting point. I think both sides need to investigate further and get all of their facts down. That being said, we will reconvene in two days to decide the verdict of the defendant, Minnie Cooper. Any objections?"

I shake my head, "The defense has no objection, your honor."

Falcon is steaming. I got him. I got him good. "N- no! This can't be… Fine! Fine, Phoenix Wright. I'll give you your extra day, but you better work hard. My case is still rock solid, and there's no way for you to weasel your way out of this one!"

The Judge nods, "Then in that case, court adjourned!" He slams his gavel.

I did it. I got myself another chance to investigate. I just hope it's enough to declare Minnie innocent. I have to do this, for myself, for Minnie, and… for Winnie Cooper.

To be continued…


	3. Investigation Part 2

**June 1, 8:25 am**

**Wright & Co. Law Offices**

**Main Office**

"Nick!"

Before I can say anything, Maya hugs me tight, pushing all of her weight on me. Obviously, she's relieved about the events of yesterday's trial. To be frank, I am as well. I didn't think I could do it. I'm still not out of the frying pan yet, there's an important trial tomorrow, and what happens today will determine whether or not I'm well equipped for the job.

"Nick, I was so worried!"

I grin at her, "It's okay Maya. We got through it. We can do this." Yesterday was definitely a tough battle, but somehow we managed to stall the judge's verdict. Hopefully, I'll be able to gather enough information to pull off a 'not guilty' for tomorrow. My question is, who actually killed Nata Otherone? I have a hunch, but there's a lot of untouched evidence at Oppel that I still haven't uncovered or made sense of.

"What are you waiting for, Nick?" Maya looks at me worried as she grabs my arm, "We have to find something to prove someone else killed Nata!"

She's right. There's no use lingering around here. The only place I'll be able to find real answers is at the scene of the crime itself- Oppel Boarding School.

**June 1, 8:54 am**

**Oppel Boarding School**

**Main Courtyard**

We're back here again. Nothing much has changed since our last visit, but there are police crawling all over the place. They're probably frantically searching for evidence like we are. I glance at Maya, but she refuses to return my look. Instead, she stares in front of me at a familiar figure.

"Hey pal… so I guess my rock solid case wasn't as solid as I thought?"

It's Gumshoe. He's looking a bit dejected, probably because I disproved parts of his theory. I kind of feel bad for bursting his bubble because he's never given a testimony at court and not been ripped apart by me. Then again… I'm just doing my job, "Hi Gumshoe… sorry about yesterday."

"No, don't apologize, pal. You're just doing your job."

At least he agrees with me. "Hey, uh, how's Rocky?" I figure I better butter him up before he'll start dishing information.

"He's fine. I kind of wanted to bring it to a prospector to check out what ore Rocky is made of. I saw on the news that sometimes there's valuable jewels hidden in there- like Pyrite!"

I don't even want to have to deal with all the contradictions in what he just said. But if he's looking for a prospector, maybe I should point him to Winnie.

"Anyway, Gumshoe," Maya throws a look at me as if to scold me for getting off topic, "Have you found any new information about the case? We would really appreciate it!" She's giving him those irresistible begging eyes. Look away! She can get people to do anything when she looks like that. I should know.

"Oh, all right. But just for you, Maya." What about me?! Gumshoe ignores my confusion and continues, "We re-examined the crime scene and found a pink slipper belonging to the victim. We found her toe prints inside. We also found the key to Dorm 508 near where she fell. Here, you can have this photo."

None of this seems out of the ordinary. Of course her key was lying next to her. It was probably always with her, and missing a slipper isn't a big deal. Chances are, it's on her balcony. The photo doesn't show anything that Gumshoe hasn't said. I don't think this is going to be the deciding factor in my case tomorrow.

"Have you started investigating the party across from Dorm 508?" Maybe this topic will help me find out more about the murder.

Gumshoe shakes his head, "No… my superiors say there's no need. They already have a culprit."

"What?!" Maya's jaw drops and she throws nervous glances at me. "Who?!"

Gumshoe shakes his head again and sighs, "The defendant, of course. Minnie Cooper."

"But this doesn't makes sense! Minnie has an alibi! She was with Cody this entire time!" Something tells me that Falcon is pulling some strings to get this going faster. Why can't prosecutors ever play fair?

"Cody isn't a reliable witness anymore." Gumshoe shrugs, looking at the ground. "They interrogated him at with a lie detector. Either it's not working, or he's definitely hiding something."

This is terrible. Not only are the police apparently set on blaming Minnie for a crime she couldn't have done, the only witness that can testify to Minnie's location and prove her innocent can't be trusted anymore! I've got to remember to interview him later. He'll probably still be in his dorm.

"Did they give any indication about what they think he's lying about?" I hate to sound so harsh, but this is information I need to know.

Gumshoe shrugs, "You know as much as I do, pal." Crud. Maybe if I talk to him later, I can try to weasel my way into his Psyche-Locks. That's got to be what he's hiding, and if the lie detector is working, it's related to this case. Come on, Cody, don't fail me now. There's also the matter of Avery Goodman's Psyche-Lock, and once I bust that party, I'm sure there will be more. I've got my work cut out for me, that's for sure.

Maya gives me a worried glance and I just shrug my shoulders. I know we'll find a way out of this somehow. It always seems to work out in the end.

Gumshoe looks down at his feet, "Sorry pal, but I don't think there's a way for you to win this one."

"Don't say that!" Maya glares at Gumshoe. I've never seen her this angry. "Nick will find a way to solve this, won't you?"

I blink. Maya sure is getting invested in this one. I thought I was supposed to be the invested one. "Uh… yeah. That's right, Maya. We'll find a way to prove Minnie innocent, because I know for a fact that she is!" For once, I'm not bluffing. There were no Psyche-Locks when Minnie said she didn't kill Nata, and only once has someone managed to pseudo-lie when I asked them that.

Gumshoe shrugs again and simply says, "Well, good luck, pal. You're going to need it." And with that, Gumshoe is off again to work on the investigation. I really hope he finds something giant.

"What are you waiting for, Nick? We should go look at the party at Dorm 507!"

She's right. There's no use dawdling around, after all.

**June 1, 9:08 am**

**Oppel Boarding School**

**Dorm 507**

I knock on the door of Dorm 507 with no answer. Considering this is urgent, I'm starting to get a little anxious. "Hey, is anyone in there?"

Maya shakes her head, "That's not how you're supposed to do it, Nick. Knock like this!" Maya knocks on the door to the rhythm of a nursery theme. Instantly the wooden door opens, showing a disheveled, fit, male student wearing only a towel around his waist, and all wet. Maya throws me a smug smile.

"What is it?" the boy asks, obviously disturbed by the sudden appearance of strangers during his bath time. His left hand grips the top of his towel tightly.

"Um," I begin, trying to ignore the awkwardness of the situation, "I'm a defense attorney for Minnie Cooper, and I was told that there was a suspicious party in this room at the time of the crime. Could you answer a few questions?"

The young man scratches his wet, messy hair with his left hand, and quickly grabs the towel with his right hand before it falls. "Um, sure. I'm going to finish showering, though, if that's okay with you… I'll get back to you in a couple of minutes."

I nod, "Sure, go ahead. What's your name, by the way?"

The boy turns to look over his shoulder as he begins to close the bathroom door. "Izzie. My name is Izzie Gei, but I prefer if you just call me 'Is'."

"All right. Go ahead, Iz. We'll wait for you."

As soon as Izzie is in the bathroom again, Maya leaps onto one of the beds and begins scouring it for clues. I look at her strangely, "Maya… what are you doing?"

She replies without even looking at me, "Investigating, duh! It's the only time we'll be able to investigate without Izzie interfering!" I see her point.

"You're right. I'll check the left side of the room, you get the right."

She nods chirping happily, "On it!"

There doesn't seem to be very much out of place in Izzie's dorm. There's some books, and a couple of swimming trophies. According to the amount of golden medals and trophies, I think I can assume Izzie is a skilled swimmer. With his physique, I don't doubt why. Geez, am I jealous.

"Ah! Nick! Look over here!" Maya utters in a shrill yelp. Obviously, something really shocked her. I rush over to the bed and put my finger on her mouth. We don't want Izzie catching on. She just flashes me a small notepad with some hastily written notes written in green pen on it. It reads 'Nata Otherone Fan Club Agenda: [1] Discuss Obsession, [2] Eat Food, [3] Plan Kidnapping'.

What?! This doesn't make sense at all. The party across the hall was for the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club'? And what does number three have to do with it. What were they thinking trying to plan a kidnapping.

"Maybe…" Maya looks up at me, scared. "The fan club was planning on kidnapping her and when she struggled, she fell off the balcony!"

It definitely is a valid theory, but why would they keep such a suspicious club agenda in a place so easily found? "Maya, where did you find this?"

She hands the notepad to me, "In the drawers of the nightstand between the beds. Right here." She points at the night stand, and after a quick rummaging, I find a small vase, turned on its side and housing a bouquet of white carnations.

Suddenly, the dorm room opens, and another male student enters Dorm 507, "Hey, Izzie, are you coming to lunch with us?"

I look up at the slim, muscular, tan student and quickly shove the small vase into Maya's hands. Hopefully, he didn't see that, "Um, Izzie's in the shower right now."

He cocks his right eyebrow and brushes his hand through his luscious, brown hair. I can hear the fangirls screaming from here. In fact, they're right behind him. "Now, now, ladies. No need to scream, you're ruining my conversation. Hey, I'm Jack. It's nice to meet you. Who are you?"

I try to ignore the small crowd of women behind him, "I'm Phoenix Wright, ace attorney." I hold out my hand to shake.

"And I'm Jack Hass, ace male, and a beautiful specimen of the species," he says as he stares nonchalantly at his nails. He doesn't even seem to care who I am. "Oh, and… you probably don't want to shake this hand." I don't even want to think about what he means by that.

"Uh, while you're here, Jack, can I ask you a few questions about May 27?"

He nods and flips his hair. Behind him, one of his fangirls faint with joy. "Sure. Shoot for it. I'll answer to the best of my ability."

"Okay, where were you at around midnight on May 27?"

Jack plays with the stubble on his chin with his right hand, "Hmm, why I was right here in Dorm 507. Izzie was hosting a party, you see, and we all went on his balcony to scream that night."

Immediately, silvery chains wrap their way around his… perfectly proportioned figure. They clamp tight, forming one solid red lock. Frankly, I'm lucky the fangirls behind him can't see the locks. I don't want to know what they would do with that sight. I'm afraid it would traumatize Maya for life. Heck, it'd probably traumatize me.

"Jack, I think you're lying. There's no way you were here just to party and scream." This is one Psyche-Lock that will be easy to crack.

"Hmph, what are you talking about? Why else would a group of guys get together before finals?" He rolls his eyes and flicks his hair. I think I'm reaching a weak spot.

"Isn't that obvious, Mr. Ass- I mean Hass? You were in this dorm for this!" I flash him the notepad with the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club' agenda on it. Immediately, his eyes light up and he begins flicking his hair rapidly, ending up messing it up in the process.

"I want you girls out… Now!" Jack's crowd of fangirls swiftly file out of the dorm room, and Jack slams the door shut. "Where did you find that?" His eyes are practically steaming.

"We found it right here in this room, Jack. You're a member of the fan club, aren't you? That's the reason why you were here on the night of the murder- to plan the kidnapping of Nata Otherone!"

The red lock shatters and the transparent chains slowly disappear. Jack cracks his knuckles and takes off his dark blue Oppel uniform jacket. He throws it on the bed nearby and cracks his neck. "…And if I was?"

"Jack, no amount of threatening can possibly scare me. You're guilty, and I know it."

Jack snorts and flicks his jet black hair to the side again, "Psh, you really think you got the murderer? You've got nothing. You've got nothing on me, and you've got nothing on the _real _murderer."

"What do you mean by that?" He's acting strange, and it's starting to scare me. I guess it doesn't help that now he's just wearing the tight button-up shirt and dark blue slacks. The top accentuates his muscles- muscles which could probably knock me out in a heartbeat.

"I'm not the killer. It's ridiculous to assume that. We're a fan club, why would we want to kill Nata? Besides, I'm not even the leader of the fan club, Izzie is."

"What? Izzie is the leader of the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club'?" Maya looks at me confused. I guess it makes sense. After all, we found the agenda in his dorm.

"Yeah. Izzie's her number one fan. He was absolutely heartbroken when she died. He hasn't quite gotten over it since then. Y'know, a real man would have just moved on."

"Wait a minute… Jack, you're not sad about her death?"

He looks at me, not amused. "I didn't know her. It sucks, but I never met or talked to her. I don't think anyone from the club outside of Izzie really had a conversation with her. I just joined because Hugh did."

"Hugh?" So, if Jack didn't know the victim, he had no emotional connection to her. That could either help or hurt our case. If he had no emotional connection to her, he could have killed her. On the same token though, if he had no emotional connection to her, why would he want to kill her?

"Hugh's my brother. I've been trying to hook him up with a girl for ages, but he was always fixated on Nata. It's the only reason I joined the club, to hook them up. It's also the only reason I organized the event for that night, not like it worked out." He glares at nothing in particular cracks his knuckles again.

"The… event? Could you be more specific, Jack?" I think I'm getting somewhere, but I'm worried Izzie will get out of the shower any minute now. Just what is that boy doing in there? Jack meets my question with silence. It looks like he's too preoccupied glaring at the wall. I can't quite tell what's going on up there, but there are no more Psyche-locks on his… very toned body. …I hate this guy. "Ahem, Jack. You planned what? Could it have been… what does it say here- 'Plan Kidnapping'?"

He goes from glaring at the wall to glaring at me, "It never happened. It was supposed to on the night she died, but we never got around to it… she was dead by the time we tried."

"And why exactly were you trying to kidnap her?" I ask, cocking an eyebrow.

Suddenly, the bathroom door opens and Izzie Gei steps out in his Oppel Uniform, hair wet and slick. Jack takes the opportunity to reach in his pocket and throw Izzie a pair of keys before quickly exiting the dorm, leaving his jacket on the bed and without so much as a last glance at Maya or I. That kid is starting to piss me off.

"Oh, sorry for taking so long." Izzie scratches his hair and pockets the set of keys.

"What did he give you?" Maya asks, obviously interested in what might become a vital piece of evidence against the club.

"Oh, they're just my car keys. He borrowed them because his motorcycle broke down."

…Never mind.

"So what did you want to ask me about, Mr. Phoenix Down?"

I shake my head, "It's Phoenix Wright. As in, I'm always wright. Get it?" Maya shakes her head and elbows me at the waist as if to say, 'You're just as bad as Mr. Goodman'. Which reminds me, I should get to talking to Mr. Goodman soon. "Anyway, Izzie, I'll make this short. What was the party during the time of the murder about-" A large Psyche-Lock wraps itself around Izzie's body. "-and why were you planning on kidnapping Izzie?" The large Psyche-Lock shatters into a million pieces.

Izzie looks utterly confused, "You… know about that?"

"Izzie, I'm the main character. I know everything."

"What Nick means to say is, he's the main player in his life, so he takes charge and learns stuff. I think you should become the main character of your life too, Izzie." Maya beams.

Izzie scratches his head, "Um… thanks?"

I shrug and continue, "So why were you trying to kidnap the victim- Nata Otherone?"

He looks down and sighs, shoving his hands awkwardly into his coat pockets, "We were going to treat her to a surprise pampering the midnight before finals. We were going to wake her up by opening the balcony door, because she hates the cold, and treat her to a bouquet of white carnations. From what I gathered from talking to her, they're her favorite flower."

So Izzie knows about Nata's hatred of cold weather, and about the white carnations. In fact, he doesn't seem to know that the flower is a symbol of Nata and Minnie's friendship. He fits the description of the killer. But… he doesn't seem like he'd be able to pull through with it, especially since he's the leader of her fan club. Maybe it was a suicide?

"Her first final was insanely early, so we figured that she wouldn't mind being woken up around midnight anyway. We had nail polish and we were going to pamper and pretty her up. I wanted to make sure that everything was going to be great for her last year of finals… so that she'd be able to ace those tests and have a night to remember. I… I also wanted to ask her out, but… but I guess that wasn't supposed to happen."

So… the kidnapping was actually just a plot to pamper Nata before finals? All of a sudden this party is seeming less and less suspicious. Still, what if something went wrong? Jack said that he pitched this idea for his brother Hugh but it never came to fruition. I bet something happened that night and it backfired. Nata could have been scared and misinterpreted the event and someone could have accidentally pushed her over the edge… both literally and figuratively.

"I'm… sorry, Izzie. I have just one more question to ask, though. What went wrong? What happened that made you all abort the mission?"

He's not even looking at me, and slowly but surely, semi-transparent chains appear, looking like they're suffocating him, and forming two large red locks. It doesn't look like I'm going to get much out of him anymore.

"I'm sorry for bothering you, Izzie. You probably need to be at other places, so I'll see you tomorrow in court, okay?"

He nods silently, still staring at the ground. Poor kid, he's so detached from the world around him now. It kind of reminds me of what I used to be like at Oppel before I met Winnie. Speaking of her, where is that girl?

**June 1, 9:43**

**Oppel Boarding School**

**Principal's Office**

Principal Avery Goodman's office door is just as horrifyingly red as his suit. To top it off, there's a horrifyingly blue tie painted in the center. Apparently, he likes to match his office to his clothing. I brace myself for the worst and hesitantly knock on the door. Hopefully, he won't go into full-

"Yo dawg! How's Phoenix, my boi? Still sharp there, eh?"

No luck there, I guess. "Uh, hey Mr. Goodman. I just wanted to ask you a couple of questions." Immediately, the light drains out of his eyes and his skin takes a pale shade. I guess this isn't going to be as easy as I wanted it to be. Then again, what case is? "Um, will that be okay? …Mr. Goodman?"

He sits down slowly, as if something is hurting him. What exactly is he hiding? The one Psyche-Lock on his chest glimmers, taunting me to open it. If only I knew how.

"Uh, yes, Phoenix. That will be acceptable… bro." He looks visibly shaken. I should probably wrap this up quickly.

"All right, Mr. Goodman. Let's start with the basics. Where were you on the night and time of the crime?"

He looks down and glances nervously up at me. "I was, um, at my office. I was clearing out papers because I knew I wouldn't have time during finals. The school year was almost done and I wanted to start next year with a fresh start."

"A… fresh start? Did anything happen this year that you weren't happy with?"

Avery starts to fiddle around with his vibrant blue tie. He plays with it using his fingers, and occasionally tugs it downwards. Something is making him nervous. "Well… I got some reports of problems in the student body."

"Please be specific, Mr. Goodman. I'm a defense attorney, and I need all the information I can get." I look at Maya who seems to be staring intently at Avery's tie. She's probably seeing what makes him tick. The closer I get to the truth, the more he'll fiddle with his tie, probably.

"Well… I had to stop a couple fights, and bust a few parties…"

"But isn't that the case for any school? There will always be fights and parties with illegal alcohol. None of that should have been too out of the ordinary."

"Well, I'm a worrywart. And… maybe I just overestimated the consequences of the situation."

I seem to have broken his barrier. He's not talking like an idiot anymore, but now that I see the real him… it's sad. He's a broken man, and he's putting up a massive front in order to make the school the best it can be. I wish he knew that he'd be more successful at his goals if he was just himself. "Mr. Goodman, with all due respect, you're lying."

He doesn't even react. He probably knew I'd catch him before he said anything… and he still tried. Maya jumps in, "Mr. Goodman! What happened this year! We need to know!" She slams her palms on his desk, making him fidget a little. She really knows how to get under his skin. He keeps pulling on his tie, its knot threatening to undo. "Mr. Goodman!" Maya continues, not letting him rest, "Did it have anything to do with the senior, Nata Otherone?"

I swear I can see rips in the fabric of his tie. "Yes! Okay, you got me. It had to do with her… and her immense popularity."

"Her immense popularity? I knew she had a fanclub, but I didn't know it extended beyond that." I try to recall if Izzie or Jack said anything about members other than they or Hugh. I don't think so. Maybe the others only joined for the same reason Jack did- for other people.

"Oh," Avery tugs, "Nata was incredibly popular. She used to be followed by a pack of students. She never seemed to notice them though."

So that would mean that one of her fans could have possibly had a motive to kill her. If she was neglecting the attention, perhaps one or two of them could have gotten jealous!

"I, uh, actually had to deal with some stalkers of her."

What?! Stalkers? This is definitely relevant to the case. A stalker is the most likely person to sneak into Nata's room and open the balcony door. A stalker is the most likely person to try to make advances on her, and a stalker is the most likely person to accidentally kill Nata in that situation! "Please, Mr. Goodman. Do you know who the stalkers are? And how did she react to that? Did she know?"

Avery shakes his head. "I deal with so many students, and the stalking incident was resolved so quickly and cleanly that I don't recall who the student was. As for Nata, she hated all the attention, but she was a smart girl. She knew about everyone who adored her. Rumor goes, she had secret dirt on all of them, but saved it until she needed to use it to get out of a bad situation."

Hmm, this is all very interesting. If Nata had something on everyone who adored her, it's very possible that she put her killer in a lose/lose situation. Maybe knowing the information, a back-up safety plan, was actually what did her in. "Was the stalker part of the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club'?"

Avery thinks for a second and then hesitantly nods, "I think so. The name rings a bell."

That lowers my suspicions down to three people: Izzie, Jack, and Hugh. Izzie seems nice enough, but there's something off about him. He seems really reluctant to talk about his obsession with Nata. Jack is just a jackass, and I haven't met Hugh yet. Are any of them actually capable of murder, accidental or otherwise?

The Psyche-Lock still exists. That alone bothers me. "Mr. Goodman, you're still lying about something. Why is it that you feel so guilty about this case?"

"W-well…" Mr. Goodman stutters, "I just… it's a murder that happened at my school! What do you expect me to feel?"

Maya stands up and slams the desk again, uncharacteristic fury in her eyes, "Sadness! Why guilt? You shouldn't feel guilty unless you did something wrong! You played a part in the murder of Nata Otherone didn't you?!"

Mr. Goodman screams and rips his fluorescent blue tie off of his suit, leaving the part around his neck dangling awkwardly. The bright red lock shatters and the chains release their grip and slowly dissipate. Was Goodman really involved in Nata's murder?

"No! …I lost a student and… it's all my fault."

"What do you mean by that, Mr. Goodman?" I say quietly, trying to stay calm.

"I… I was the root cause of her death." He cups his head in his hands staring intently downwards at his desk. Maya doesn't seem to want to let up. Nevertheless, I grab her arm and slowly pull her back into the office chairs. "I… started the Finals Week Scream-a-Thon!"

…That's it? I expected something more along the lines of a dramatic confession. His Psyche-Lock is gone though, so I guess he's telling the truth. Starting the scream-a-thon really is his only connection to the case. I guess he feels guilty for starting the event that the murder was planned around. Technically, if no was screaming, they'd be able to hear Nata's argument with the killer and thus possibly stop her murder. I guess in some way, he _is_ partly responsible. Still, he shouldn't feel the need to put himself under this much guilt.

"I'm… so sorry. I didn't meat to get her killed!" Is he… sobbing?

"Mr. Goodman, it's not your fault. Nata's death isn't your fault!" I let him sit and sob for a little bit, gripping Maya's left arm tightly in order to prevent her from doing anything rash. After he calms down a bit, I continue "When was the scream-a-thon conceived?"

After a brief pause: "A couple of years ago. I thought it would… help the students relieve stress."

"You've done nothing wrong, Mr. Goodman. Don't worry about that. Maya, I think we should leave Mr. Goodman alone, okay?"

She casts a dejected look and silently nods. "Feel better, Mr. Goodman… I'm sorry for shouting."

He doesn't respond staring red-eyed at his desk, and I take the cue to lead Maya out of the office. I didn't realize he was carrying something that hurt him so much inside. Unfortunately, it's not my job to help him through this, it's my job to find the truth. And I'm quickly running out of time.

**June 1, 1:15 pm**

**Oppel Boarding School**

**Dorm 108**

Maya and I took a break to get lunch and calm down after Mr. Goodman's breakdown. It definitely was something that I didn't expect to see, and I know it scared Maya just as much, if not more, than it did me. The important thing is that we got the information out of him. Someone was stalking Nata Otherone, and she was fed up. Something happened and she tried to blackmail the attacker. The killer probably hit her on the cheek with the nearest thing found- Minnie's stiletto heel, and then chased her on the balcony, where a rash decision resulted in her falling five stories on to the pavement below.

Cody saw parts of the murder, but not all of it. Minnie didn't seem to see anything, I don't even know why. If she was out on the balcony with Cody, she should have seen everything. Note to self: talk to Cody before the day ends. The 'Nata Otherone Fan Club' was planning to kidnap Nata, and they would have done everything that the killer did, but something happened. It's possible that they started the procedure, but got interrupted, but it's also possible that someone in the club went on ahead of them. was in the kitchen at eleven and ran back to his room right after, afraid of getting chastised and Mr. Goodman was in his office the entire time.

No one seems to be able to have done it. Just about everyone has a rock-hard alibi. Regardless, I'm going to talk to Mikey, because he was the one that found the body. I can't imagine opening the curtains to your dorm and finding a dead body slung on the railing can be very comforting, but I guess I'm going to have to try to squeeze out any information I can from him. Hopefully, he's not too disturbed by the events.

Before I even knock on the door, I can hear yelling from inside Dorm 108. I recognize Mikey's voice but… who's the other guy? I exchange a look with Maya and decide not to knock. Taking a deep breath, I turn the knob quickly and burst into the room.

Mikey is standing facing a pale male student with a cane amidst the clutter of the dorm. Both of them are screaming at each other. It isn't until they notice us that they stop and stare awkwardly at Maya and I.

"Sorry for just barging in, but I was wondering if you had a minute, Mikey."

Mikey turns to look at me and stares awkwardly. I don't think they were expecting anyone to come in. "Um… Hi Mr. Wright. This is my roommate, Hugh. I don't believe you've met." So this is Hugh. I should take this opportunity and try to get as much information as I can out of these two.

"I'm really sorry for interrupting you guys, but I have just a few small questions to ask. I promise Maya and I will leave as soon as we finish. Is that okay?"

Mikey and Hugh exchange angry glances. After an unspoken agreement, Mikey nods.

"All right. Hugh, where were you on the night of the crime?"

Hugh shakes his head, "If you're trying to pin this on me, don't bother. Not only was I at the party the Sunday before finals, I'm not in any position to pull off a murder."

"What do you mean by that, Hugh?" This case is getting more and more confusing by the minute.

Hugh points to his face, "Haven't you noticed how pale I am? If you met my brother, you'll know Jack doesn't share this quality. I'm sickly. I'm dying. The doctors don't even know what it is, but they doubt I'll last more than a year. I'm weak enough as is, do you think I have the strength to push a one hundred twenty or so pound girl off of a three foot balcony rail? I don't think so."

He's right. There's no possible way Hugh could have done it. If we just focus on the suspects in this room, that leaves Mikey. His alibi seems solid enough and we broke his Psyche-Lock already. Is there anyone that has both a legit motive and a way to murder the victim? "Okay, then Mikey, what did you see when you opened your curtains that day?"

Mikey looks down, uncomfortable, "Nata's dead body draped over the fence rail of my patio. It… wasn't an easy sight to overcome. I called the police right after I found it." Again, everything checks out.

"Well… I'm sorry to have you disturbed both of you. We'll just be leaving, then."

Hugh shakes his head and slowly walks past me, holding his forehead, "It's okay. I was going too."

I hold the door open for him and slowly close it behind us before walking down the hallway. Before we leave though, something catches my eye in the partially open trash bin nearby- a left pink slipper. That's strange. It reminds me of something. I better keep it, just in case.

"Wait, Mr. Wright." Hugh whispers quietly. I stop and he hobbles towards me. "Take this evidence. I'm sure it'll be vital to the case." He hands me a small black and white photo before nodding and limping away.

The photo appears to have been taken during a baseball game. Nata and Minnie are sitting in chairs in the foreground, cheering a team along. There's a vender nearby, selling hot dogs, and lots of students cheering including Izzie, Jack, and Hugh. They're two rows behind Nata. Avery Goodman is standing on the stairs behind the vender, trying to get his attention and beneath the adjacent bleachers is Mikey, sulking with a book. What does this mean? And where does Cody fit into this photo. I guess I better go find out.

**June 1, 1:51**

**Oppel Boarding School**

**Dorm 506**

Cody seems to know I'm coming even before I get to his dorm. He's sitting outside of his dorm room, head leaning onto the door behind him. He looks visibly disturbed.

"Hey Cody. You probably guessed what we're here for…"

He nods. Maya glances up at me worriedly, "Um, Cody? Are you okay?"

He shakes his head and turns away. I don't think he wants us to see his red eyes. Has he been… crying? "Cody, what happened?"

After a brief moment of silence he shrugs and mutters, "I've done some… bad things. They caught up to me."

"What kind of bad things?" Could this be related to the case?

"I… don't want to talk about it."

"Cody… we both want Minnie declared innocent. We need to know everything." I look at Maya for support and she nods silently. She can tell something is wrong and looks terrified that it might hurt our case. The Psyche-Lock he has from the other night is still clamped shut on his chest. I'm going to need to break it today or else I'm screwed for tomorrow's trial.

"Just… don't judge me, okay?"

I look at Maya, making sure she understands she can't act like she did in Mr. Goodman's office for this witness. She gives me a knowing look and I slowly nod at Cody. "We promise."

"Well… I was dating Minnie during the time of the crime. I mean, I guess technically we're still going out but… I don't know anymore."

"But… wasn't Mikey her boyfriend?" Could it be that… Mikey cheated on her?

"Yeah, he was dating her but… I was dating her behind his back." He looks down at his shoes and shrugs again. "I mean, everyone knew their relationship wasn't going very well… She was getting tired of him, and he… rumor has it he didn't really like her much anymore."

Maya scratches her shoulder awkwardly, "So… what happened then?"

"Well… he never found out, but I had to… lie in parts of my testimony to cover this up."

I shake my head, "What?! You lied in your testimony?"

Immediately, his head collapses into his hands and the Psyche-Locks shatter into countless small pieces that slowly disappear into the air. "I didn't want to but… I couldn't tell people…"

This must be why the police don't consider Cody a reliable witness anymore. He lied in part of his testimony and the lie detector managed to pick it up. This is bad. I'm going to need him to change his testimony so I can find out the truth. "Cody. I need you to tell me what really happened."

He nods and sighs deeply, "She came over that night to do couple things. We weren't really studying. I still went out to look at the stars at one point, and the part about Nata's open and closed balcony door is true. But… the reason Minnie didn't see anything was the fact that we weren't actually screaming. We were on my balcony… kissing. We were facing each other and… her back was to Nata's balcony, so only I saw anything."

It's starting to make sense now. This is the reason why Minnie couldn't see anything. She had no idea that anything was out of the ordinary. And that must be why…

"So when I saw the shadow running towards the balcony door, I shoved Minnie into my dorm and ran in after her because I didn't want Nata knowing that she was cheating on Mikey…"

So what prevented him from stopping the murder and seeing the murderer was… a simple juvenile case of relationship problems?

"I know what this sounds like, Mr. Wright but… I really do love her. I depend on her and… I just wouldn't be Cody Pendant without her. I'm… not giving up on her, and if I have to testify in court tomorrow, I'm not repeating what I just said."

"Cody," I sigh, "If you really love her… you will do what it takes to make this case as clear as it can be, and the way to do that is to tell the truth."

He looks away and throws a scrapped issue of the _Oppel Opal_ which head in his pocket before going into his dorm and locking the door. The issue's title is "Witness refuses to Talk. How will Wright Get out of This One?" I swear, this school has the weirdest titles.

From the looks of it, this is the most I'm going to get out of anyone… I've got a couple more leads and a lot more suspects, but if Cody doesn't comply tomorrow… my case is ruined. Let's hope he does the right thing…

To be continued…


	4. Trial Part 2

**June 2, 9:27 am**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 3**

It's that time again. Okay, Phoenix, take a deep breath and relax. I know I can do this if I just try my hardest. I trust Cody enough to believe that he'll do the right thing and tell a true account of what happened. Besides, I need to stay strong for Maya; she's just as emotionally invested in this case as I am, and I can't quite figure out why.

"Hey, Nick?" Maya looks at me worriedly, barely touching her burger breakfast. "Do you think we can win today?"

I try to appear as calm as possible and slowly nod, "Of course, Maya. If we put our minds together and try our best, it's impossible for us to lose."

"But… that's just what people tell people who are worried. Everyone knows it's not true."

What? I know that Maya is an intelligent girl, but I would never think that she'd be so… cynical, for lack of a better word. I guess… life's been really tough on her, and I think sometimes I'm too reluctant to show her how much she means to me. "Maya… where'd you get an idea like that?"

Maya looks away, her hair falling and covering her face, "It's what Mia used to say all the time. She always wanted to make a difference and used to tell me that if I tried my best, I couldn't be beaten. Well… she's dead now. She tried her best and… she was still beaten."

That was awfully stupid of me, bringing up a quote from Mia. Maya's a strong girl, but something must be triggering her emotional reactions to this case. She usually comes off as so strong when it comes to Mia, but something about this case is making her crack.

I wonder if I can find it out before it's too late.

**June 2, 10:01 am**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

Falcon Wong smiles at me as he pours himself his first glass of dark wine. "I'm looking forward to this, Phoenix. Let's see if that one day has really helped you gather your thoughts."

"We'll see." I counter, "If I recall correctly, we ended with _you _on the defensive."

He shrugs and shakes his head, "Pardon me, but I remember it quite differently." Before I can respond, he takes his place behind the prosecution podium, and I take it as a cue to escort Maya and myself to the defense. Within a few moments, the lovable Judge has found his way to his station, and he bangs his gavel gleefully.

"Well, here we are once again. Now, Mr. Wong, could you recap what was said before we reconvened for those of us with… ahem, aging memories?" By the looks of his shifty eyes, I think he's trying to pretend the audience in the courtroom has forgotten the details, but I'm pretty sure he's the only one.

"Certainly, you honor." Wong nods and swishes the contents of his cup around, "As we discussed on May 30, we know that the victim, Nata Otherone, had a bruise on her right cheek, which matched the sole of the defendant's right stiletto heel. We know Nata was pushed over the edge of her fifth story balcony to land on the fence of a witness's patio, breaking her back and killing her immediately. We are aware that the defendant and the victim were very good friends, but had a dispute soon before the day of the crime. Nata Otherone went to sleep at around 10:00, died at 12:03, and was found on the patio of Dorm 108 at 12:05." He adds with gritted teeth, "Through Mr. Wright, we have learned that it was impossible for Minnie Cooper to have kicked Nata Otherone with her heel."

I smirk. At least I got him there.

"That being said, there could still be more than one perpetrator, so Ms. Cooper's innocence cannot be declared so prematurely. She and the victim got into a large argument two days before the murder, and a single white carnation, a symbol of their friendship, was found in the crime scene next to the stiletto heel. Still, all signs point to Ms. Cooper. When we left off, Mr. Wright was entertaining the theory that the killer was madly in love with the victim."

"That is still entirely possible." I add, "It would explain the irrational behavior. Besides, as I've found by asking around Oppel, Nata was a very popular student. I wouldn't be surprised if she had her very own group of admirers… say, a fan club?"

"What are you saying?" the Judge looks at me confused. Sometimes I think that's the only expression he knows how to wear.

"As instructed, I investigated the party across the hall from Dorm 508. It was… a 'Nata Otherone Fan Club' filled with plenty of new suspects!"

The crowd murmurs and I smile. I'm finally starting to get some new ground. If I'm going to distract Wong long enough to figure out what went on that night, I'm going to have to run circles around the evidence and draw this out as long as I possibly can.

"Well, Mr. Wright, would you like to bring a witness to the stand?" Wong sips his wine.

"Yes, thank you, Mr. Wong. I'd like to call to the stand… Izzie 'Iz' Gei!"

"Mr. Wright!" the Judge glares, "You do realize this court will _not _condone any foul language or prejudice based on race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender!"

…What? "I- I don't understand your honor."

"Saying a witness is 'gay' is not the most polite thing to do. And so what if he was? Does that impede his ability to testify?"

…Are you serious? "With all due respect, your honor, that is the witness's name. Of course I realize the court does not condone prejudice, neither should lawyers…" It'd be hypocritical of me to be prejudiced based on race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender, especially since I've met so many great people who fit into these groups. Does the Judge seriously think I'd say anything of the sort?

"Oh… it's his name? Is that true, Mr. Wong?"

Falcon looks like he's about to slam his head on the desk, "Yes, your honor, that is indeed the a name of a student at Oppel. "

"Oh, pardon me, then Mr. Wright. Please continue."

Geez… as if this courtroom couldn't get anymore tiresome. "Thank you, your honor. I'd like to call to the stand… Izzie Gei!"

**June 2, 10:16 am**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

Izzie scratches his head awkwardly and looks down at the witness podium.

"Please state your name and occupation, Izzie." I say. Maya gives me a sly glance. It isn't until then that I realize I just said his name.

"Um, Izzie Gei, I'm a student at Oppel Boarding School."

"Please tell us the nature of the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club'."

Izzie shrugs and looks down. Obviously, this is information he never wanted to reveal to the public at large. "It wasn't anything bad, I promise! The 'Nata Otherone Fan Club' was just a gathering of students that…" he stops suddenly and rolls up the sleeve of his button up Oppel uniform. "Oh, look at my wrist. I really need to be going…"

"Objection!" I say as firmly as I can. "Continue your testimony, Izzie. Please."

After a brief moment, Izzie concedes, "We were a gathering of students that… had an obsession with Nata or had… crushes on her."

"Hold it! Izzie, was this obsession possibly unhealthy in some of the members of this club?"

Izzie avoids my eyes and scratches his head again. "Um, I guess you could say that."

"And could it be possible that one of your club members accidentally murdered Nata Otherone?"

At this, Izzie glares up at me, eyes like dark slits, "No!!! That's impossible! We would NEVER. EVER. HURT HER!!!"

The crowd is silent. After an extended awkward silence, I hear some glass shattering on the ground. Falcon, wide-eyed with surprise at Izzie's reaction, has managed to drop his bottle of wine on the floor without noticing. Slowly, the wine flows away from his podium. The random wine leak is really adding on to the awkwardness of the moment, and my anxiety.

"I'm, uh, not saying that you would hurt her, I'm just saying… is it a possibility that someone in your club could have done that?"

Izzie, still glaring, slowly begins to move his lips, "Not. A. Chance."

"W-w-well, I see he's made his point, Mr. Wright." The Judge appears from underneath his desk, "Please escort him off the witness stand immediately."

"Objection!" I slam my hands on the desk. I've dealt with worse and more intimidating witnesses before, and I know how to deal with Izzie, "There _is _a possibility of a fan of hers committing a crime, and I can prove it!"

"Oh, really?" Falcon adds as he bends over to pick up a new bottle of wine from underneath his podium. I'm starting to think that he has little cubicles full of wine stashed behind that thing. "And what's your proof?"

"My proof," I begin, starting to sweat, "is this vase of carnations, found in the witness's dorm and the headquarters of the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club'!"

Falcon shakes his head and sighs, "Mr. Wright, What does this prove? That Izzie liked carnations?"

"Not just any carnations, Mr. Wong, _white _carnations! Izzie was stashing a vase of white carnations in his room, a fan club for Nata Otherone, whose favorite flower was the white carnation! Doesn't this seem a bit suspicious?" I think I've got him now.

"Why? If he liked her, wouldn't it be logical that he would buy her favorite flower for her?"

…Why didn't I think of that?

Falcon takes a sip of his wine, "Well, in that case, I think we can escort Mr. Gei off of the witness stand now. I'd now like to call Jack Hass to the st-"

"Hold it!" The crowd begins murmuring and I grin. I just love getting the crowd riled up. "I'm not finished yet, Mr. Wong! The flowers are not the only pieces of evidence I have against the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club'. I'd like to present something else, your honor." This is it. This is the moment where I can break this case wide open!

"Well, of course, Mr. Wright. You've never asked me before…"

"In fact," Falcon smirks, "Mr. Wright has a nasty habit of being as loud and rude as possible in the courtroom." Look who's talking!

The Judge nods, "You're right! I think that deserves minor penalty, Mr. Wright." What?! Now this is just completely unfair. "I'm giving you one chance, Mr. Wright. Show us this vital piece of evidence."

It doesn't matter how few chances he's giving me, I just know this will help my case. "Your honor, I would like to present this: the agenda for the Nata Otherone Fan Club!"

Izzie's eyes widen and he quickly slams his hands on the table, "This is a breach of my privacy! You're not supposed to see that!"

"Your honor, this was taken during my investigation." I motion at the agenda, "It reads '[1] Discuss Obsession, [2] Eat Food, [3] Plan Kidnapping'. Don't you find this odd, your honor?" I throw a glance at Falcon who just stares, wide-eyed at the agenda.

"This is an outrage! He has obviously forged evidence!" Falcon roars, holding a full bottle of wine with his right hand, ready to throw it at my face.

I shake my head, smiling, "You can go ahead and get this fingerprint-tested. It's definitely Izzie's handwriting." Immediately, a dark wine bottle shoots at me like a missile, which I only barely dodge. The liquid splatters on the wall behind me and covers part of my suit and skin.

Maya takes a napkin out and begins wiping my sleeves before halting in confusion. "Nick, this isn't wine."

Before I can yell at Falcon, I turn to Maya and quietly lick part of my hand, now covered in drink. It tastes… like grape. It's grape punch! "Wait a second, Falcon! This isn't Falcon Wine, it's Falcon Punch!"

He glares at me and raises another bottle threateningly. Where does he get so many of these things? Before he can lob another at me, the Judge interferes, "Mr. Wong! Put the bottles back on the table! It's not enough that you must constantly drink it, but you can't restrain yourself from hurling them at the defense? If you persist, I will give you a penalty!" Huh, so he almost gets a penalty for almost killing me, and I get one for being allegedly rude? So fair.

"As I was saying before I was pelted with punch, which was quite rude, I might add, the Nata Otherone Fan Club was planning on kidnapping the victim. Isn't this a tad bit suspicious, your honor? I think we should spend more time on this matter."

"Indeed, Mr. Wright. It's very plausible that one of the members of the club killed the victim. What do you say, Mr. Wong?"

Growling, Falcon slowly responded, "We'll delve into it. This won't change my battle plans though, and I'd still like to call Jack Hass to the stand."

What could be the worst that could happen? Maya gives me a stern look and I shrug. I forgot about _that_. "All right. I'll allow it."

The Judge hit his gavel, "Will Jack Hass please take to the stand?"

**June 2, 10:42 am**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

Jack Hass flips his hair and flexes his arms as the pack of fangirls behind him squeal loudly. He ignores them and continues flexing.

"Mr. Hass, I'm going to have to ask you to leave the fangirls in the audience." The Judge states, looking bewildered as ever.

"Huh." Jack rolls his eyes, "I can try, but I can't promise they'll listen to me." He looks over his shoulder at the pack of fangirls, "I'll take my shirt off if you leave me alone for the trial." Immediately, they're completely out of view. Smirking, he removes his shirt and throws it to the side. It kind of looks like it's flying away in slow motion. Somewhere in the audience, fangirls quarrel over who gets to keep the shirt.

Please, kill me now.

"All right, Mr. Wong, please proceed." The Judge nods.

Falcon shakes his head, "No need to tell me, your honor. Now, witness, please state your name and occupation."

Jack flips the hair out of his eyes, "My name is Jack Hass and I'm a student at Oppel Boarding School."

Hmm, you'd think after the fifth or so student, we'd be able to stop asking where everyone's from. I digress.

"Mr. Hass, please give us a quick run-through of where you were and what you were doing on the day of the murder- May 27!"

"No problem, Wong." He smirks. Where does he get off acting so casually in a courtroom? "I was walking my brother, Hugh, to the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club' meeting place. He can walk on his own, usually, but it's nice to make sure he's all right."

"Your brother is suffering from a debilitating illness, is he not, Mr. Hass?" I interrupt.

"Yeah, you got a problem with it? He's been sickly all his life, and the doctors keep spewing expiration dates here and there. He's weak, all right, but he hasn't died so far, and he isn't going to for some time."

"What do you mean by that?" I throw a glance at Maya, who shrugs back, "Did the doctors misdiagnose Hugh?"

Jack flips his hair, "It's not that. They… just don't know what they're talking about."

Is that… sadness I hear in his voice? Maybe if I keep pressing him, I can get something interesting as a payoff.

"Please continue with your testimony, witness." The Judge nods.

"Okay, whatever, old man." Jack rolls his eyes, but something tells me it's not because he's bored. "So I was helping my brother up to the fifth floor, because he lives in the first. When we got there, he had to go to the bathroom, so instead of going into Izzie's place, he went in the shared public bathroom on the fifth floor. I decided to go to Izzie's without him because, well, I'm pretty sure he can walk on flat surfaces by himself."

"Hold it! So why did Hugh need your help going to the fifth floor?"

Jack stares at me blankly and I grin. I got him there.

"…Because he has trouble getting up stairs."

Maya elbows me in the waist and glares. Why didn't I think of that?

I cough, "Uh, yes, Jack. Everyone here realized that. I, uh, don't know why you would mention such obvious information…"

"Mr. Wright!" The Judge slams his gavel and glares at me, "Don't project your imperfections on witnesses! That's even worse than badgering them!"

D'oh! Why does everyone seem against me today? "Sorry, your honor. Please continue, Jack."

"So, I went to Izzie's first and we didn't really do anything. I've never been a fan of the club in the first place."

"Hold it! If you weren't a fan of the club, why were you a member?"

Falcon shakes his head and takes a sip of wine- I mean grape punch, "Isn't it obvious, Mr. Wright? His younger brother, Hugh, was an avid fan of Nata Otherone, and someone needed to help Hugh get to the fifth floor for all of the meetings."

Ugh, I already know this, Falcon. I just needed Jack to say it himself so I could throw in more proof to support my case. "Is this true, Jack?"

Jack nods and squeezes his left bicep with his right hand, "Psh, where are you going to go with that? You can't possibly find some way to pin this on me with that kind of logic."

Maya lightly taps my shoulder and gives me a meaningful look. I think she's trying to tell me that squeezing his left bicep seems to be his nervous tic. "Jack, what are you nervous about?"

He stays silent looking to his left and squeezing his bicep.

"Jack! I need to know everything that happened that day! What are you nervous about?"

Immediately a heavy weight pushes me down and I hit the ground hard. If it weren't for a quick reflexive move of my arm, I might have hit my jaw on the ground. Maya screeches and tries to pull the thing off of me. Panicking, I fling the weight off to my right and scramble backwards to the safety of my podium. Looming in front of me… is the barely five-foot frame of one of Jack's fangirls.

"DON'T TALK TO MY JACKIE LIKE THAT!" she screams, sleeves rolled up and hands in fists.

The courtroom guards are quick to escort her out of the area leaving Maya and I to recuperate. The Judge looks on, bewildered, "Witness, is that woman with you?"

He shakes his head, facepalming, "I don't even know her. She's probably just a fangirl."

"Mr. Wright, are you okay?" Falcon adds, in a tone that actually sounds vaguely concerned.

"Yes… I'm fine." To be honest, I'm more shocked than actually hurt. If anything, I'll probably wake up with a bruise somewhere on my upper body tomorrow morning. "Um, I suppose we should continue with the interrogation."

Jack looks to his left again and closes his eyes.

"Jack, uh, what are you nervous about?"

After a couple of seconds, Jack opens his eyes, a single tear welling up, "…My brother."

What?! Not to sound like a jackass, but I always assumed that Jack Hass was a total, well, jackass! Maybe… maybe there's something else to him after all.

"Heh." Jack grins slightly, "I can't believe you bought it." He mutters.

The tear is still there, and I don't believe for a second that his emotions just then were contrived. He's definitely hiding something. "Jack, what about your brother worries you?"

He's silent. I won't be able to get much more out of him at this pace.

"Since Mr. Wright is failing to make progress," Falcon grits his teeth, obviously peeved that this case has gone on so long, "I would like to ask some questions to the witness. I will prove to you all today that the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club' was completely harmless!"

Bite me, Falcon.

"Jack," begins Falcon, "What was the purpose of the so-called kidnapping?"

Jack rolls his eyes, "The group wanted to pamper Nata. It was actually pretty sappy and gross, but whatever they want to do is their prerogative."

"Exactly. And do you know precisely what they were planning to do during the kidnapping?"

Jack nods, "That's simple. They wanted to surprise her during the scream-a-thon with a bouquet of white carnations. They were going to do her toenails and give her a massage and make her relaxed for the next day's final."

Falcon nods, "Do you hear that, Mr. Wright? The fan club was completely harmless!"

"Objection!" I slam my hands on the podium so hard they turn red and glare at Falcon. "We don't know that! As I've proven earlier, the culprit's motive was out of love! Love makes people act irrationally, and any of the members of the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club' could have been forced to murder her!"

"'Forced', Mr. Wright? Do explain." He grins, taking another sip.

"The victim had dirt on just about everyone in the school. If the plan happened as it was arranged, at least one of the members would have snuck into the room to pamper her. If she woke up and saw this, she was likely to think it was a stalker! Ergo, she would have spewed the information she had on him, forcing him to kill her to stop whatever it was from leaking!"

I got him now!

Falcon shakes his head, grinning. I hate when prosecutors do that. It's so obnoxious. "First of all, you never proved the killer's motive at all; you only assumed. Second of all, what secrets could possibly be so bad that someone had to kill Otherone for?"

I shake my head, grinning. See how it feels, Falcon? Yeah, it hurts. Hopefully, it'll teach you to stop shaking your head while grinning. "I think, Mr. Wong, that we can find out that secret by calling another witness to the stand."

"And who would that be?" The Judge blinks absent-mindedly.

"Jack Hass's sickly brother, Hugh!"

**June 2, 11:14 am**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

Hugh Jass awkwardly swings the hair out of his eyes by quickly moving his head. He stares at me and shrugs. Evidently, he has no idea why he's here.

"Witness, please state your name and occupation." Falcon uncorks another bottle of punch.

"Umm.. my name is Hugh Jass and I'm a student at Oppel Boarding School."

Falcon throws me a look, "Shoot."

Obviously, he's confident that I won't be able to get anything out of Hugh. I'm here to prove him wrong. "Hugh, please give a quick run-through of what happened on the night of the murder. Where were you and what were you doing?"

Hugh shifts his weight to his right leg and tilts his head awkwardly, looking up at the ceiling. "Well, I don't quite remember it all too well, honestly. It was a night of a meeting of the 'Nata Otherone Fan Club', and my brother Jack helped me get up the stairs."

So far, so good.

"Once we got up there, I felt like going to the bathroom, so I went at Izzie's room. After that, we planned our pampering night and Izzie went out to scout the situation. I stayed in his room the rest of the night until he came back fretting because she wasn't in her room."

Maya elbows me and flashes a suspicious look. She's right; something's not checking out. But what is it? I don't have any testimony on Izzie leaving to scout the room, but I have nothing to prove it's untrue.

"Are you finished, Mr. Wright?" Falcon rolls his eyes and chugs his glass of punch. "I'm getting awfully bored with your methods of defending."

"Objection!"

"Mr. Wright." The Judges shakes his head, "You can't object to Mr. Wong's statement."

You'd think it'd be entertaining to work with crazy people. It's really not. It's just very depressing. "I wasn't objecting to Mr. Wong's statement, your honor, I was objecting to the testimony."

"Then why are you talking to me?"

He just never gets less clueless, doesn't he?

"As I was saying, Izzie, you're lying."

Izzie's eyes widen and his arm goes in front of his face in a defense reaction position.

"You didn't go to the bathroom in Izzie's room. I have testimony from your brother saying you went to the public restroom on the fifth floor and he went to Izzie's room alone!"

He gasps, "W-well, that doesn't prove anything! It was a while ago so I don't remember small details like that!"

"I don't believe you! Your right hand is holding your left arm! This is almost exactly what your brother does when he's nervous or lying! Tell me, what did you see in the bathroom that made you lie in your testimony? It could be vital evidence!"

Hugh gulps. I think I got him this time. "…I… I heard a clinking sound."

"A clinking sound?" I turn to Maya, but all she does is shrug. "What kind of noise was it?"

"Well, I was in the bathroom and I had just finished washing my hands when I heard a metallic clinking sound. It was kind of hard to with all the screaming, but it happened at least three or four times."

"Hmm." Falcon nods, "It makes sense. A key was found underneath Nata. It's not implausible to assume that the key fell with her and fit several railings as it plunged downwards. It likely got caught underneath her right before she died."

I think Gumshoe mentioned something about a key on one of my investigations. But wasn't it just Nata's? What does that have to do with anything?

"Minnie revealed to me not too long ago," Hugh continues, "That she lost her key and couldn't get into her dorm." Hugh gulps. "I took my roommate's spare key and used it to unlock the door for her. I have reason to believe that… her key is the one that was near Nata's body."

"Ah-hah!" Falcon celebrates, "This proves that Minnie had some involvement with the murder of Nata Otherone! The flowers were a sign of friendship, Minnie is the only one that can fit into those shoes, and all of Cody Pendant's testimony can be considered invalid due to his lying incident. Minnie is the only possible suspect that could have killed Nata and had a valid enough reason and resource to do so. Case closed."

After a beat, the Judge nods, "I'd have to agree with Mr. Wong. His case seems very solid. Do you have any last thing to say, Mr. Wright before I declare my verdict?"

I…I don't have anything left. The photo Hugh gave me is completely useless. I bet it was just a ruse to stop me from investigating. Damn it! I was so close to!

"In that case, I would like to declare the defendant, Minnie Cooper, guilt-"

"Hold it!"

I turn to the side, completely and utterly shocked, and I can see the audience, Judge, Falcon, Hugh, and Maya are as well. Standing in the doorway wearing a v-neck black dress and long black stiletto high-heeled-boots, with her blonde hair straight and past her chin, with lips full enough to jump on, and eyes that could pierce through a podium, stands Winnie Cooper.

"This witness is a liar, and I have the keys to prove it and solve this case!"

To Be Continued…


End file.
